The Nightmare on Hallow's Eve
by Mystic Spirit Angel
Summary: Amelia is a 9 year old girl who is scared of anything the least bit spooky and accidentally wanders into Halloween Town. What happens when The Pumpkin King befriends her and a certain burlap-sack monster also takes an interest in the newcomer? Complete!
1. Halloween Town

**Background Info: Ok, just so you know Sally will not 'exist' in my series for reasons in the third story (yes there will be sequels.) Some authors do away with her by a freak accident or something and I decided I wasn't going to be that mean so I simply made an 'alternate universe.' **

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Nightmare Before Christmas (though I wish I did,) _This is Halloween_, or the English version of _Wie Melodien Zieht es Mir._**

**And now, from the crazy mind that brought you _Arikata's Story, _Mystic Spirit Angel presents...**

**_The Nightmare on Hallow's Eve_**

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_A soul wanders through a dense forest until she comes upon a circle of tall trees with an odd color of bark. She stands in the center, her figure is transparent. Her long white gown flows in a breeze that is not even there. Her hair that was once in an elegant bun hung down in loose, messy locks. Her skin is pale as is her hair. She turns toward you and softly, yet loud enough to be heard, she speaks. _

_T'was a long time ago, longer now than it seems_

_In a place that perhaps you've seen in your dreams._

_For the story you're about to be told,_

_Began with a holiday world of old._

_Now you've probably wondered about the holiday Halloween,_

_Such as, what exactly is the Pumpkin King? _

_Well you see now, one little girl found out,_

_What Halloween was all about._

_And I'm here to tell you her story so great,_

_About when two different worlds met by mistake._

A young girl about the age of nine skipped along the sidewalk of a suburb street in the late evening with her basket in the shape of a smiling pumpkin swinging at her side. She had short, dusty blonde hair and bright blue eyes full of life. She wore a black, red, and orange dress of the scary kind while trying not to trip every now and then. The sleeves were long with tattered ends. Thin pieces of crimson red lining draped over the skirt which was flowing to give a haunting effect. Black boots that served as her costume shoes. As she was skipping ever so happily she was singing a melody with no words, just notes.

A grumbling boy of about twelve was trudging behind the cheerful girl. He wore dark, baggy clothing and had short, brunette hair and brown eyes that were on the lookout for something. He was very tall compared to the little girl prancing a few feet in front of him. It was easy to see that he was athletic for he had a slight tan, was quite thin, and had the beginning build of a cross-country runner.

The little girl ceased her skipping and stopped singing as she gazed at one of the houses on the block. "How about that house, John?" she asked the older boy addressed as John, pointing toward a house only a couple yards away.

He looked at the house in question, "That's a haunted house. Are you sure you're brave enough to handle it?" he taunted.

The girl became very nervous and shifted a little, "Y-yes I am! I'm a big girl now and I'm not scared of anything!" she tried to sound convincing but her voice faltered.

The older boy laughed at her attempt of courage, "You're just a little kid so quit acting like your big and tough like me." He pointed to himself in a prideful manner.

The girl glared at John and was about to speak again when two voices called to them.

"Hey John!" a stout boy with an average height in similar dark, baggy clothes called to them, he appeared to be the same age as John. He had sandy blonde hair with bangs that hung low, almost covering his green eyes which were shielded by glasses.

Also dressed in similar clothing, another boy next to the stout one was about the same height and age with the appearance of an average weight. He too had sandy blonde hair only cut short like John's with blue eyes and a round face. When they reached the skinny boy, the blue-eyed boy noticed the girl and began laughing, "You got stuck _babysitting_?" he laughed at the brunette haired boy again.

"Shut up Cody! I'm getting paid ten dollars an hour with this kid." John fisted his hands and looked slightly peeved at the boy addressed as Cody.

"Man I don't even get paid that much when I baby sit my sister." The stout boy with glasses complained as he shoved his hands in his pockets.

"That's because she's your sister, Trevor." Cody bluntly pointed out. "Who is this kid anyway?" he questioned the lean boy before him.

"This is Amelia," he gestured to the slightly confused little girl, "She's my neighbors' kid and they needed someone to take her trick-or-treating 'cause they had some party to go to."

"Man!" Trevor shouted with despair. "So when are we gonna…" He trailed off making an odd gesture with his shoulders as if to tell him what he was trying to say, "You know…"

"Yeah, I know. Listen this is gonna be the last house and…" a thought popped into John's head, "You know, Amelia here says that she's a big girl and can go into the haunted house. Do you guys think she's up to it?"

They knew what he was implying. All three smirked and turned toward the timid girl. Trevor spoke, "Really? Only big kids are brave enough to go into _that_ house."

"Yeah, are you sure you're not _scared_?" Cody added.

Amelia became fearful but tried to save some of her dignity, "We-well then y-you guys gotta go in with me…o-ok?"

"Of course," John spoke with an obvious fake smile, "we'll stay with you the whole way." As she turned toward the house in question, the three boys grinned with malice and they ushered her toward the spooky house. "We're right behind you." John said as they reached the door.

With a shaky hand, Amelia turned the knob on the door and gave it a small push. It creaked open slowly that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand straight up. She nervously fisted her hand and placed it on her mouth, which was something she always did whenever she was really scared. She hesitated to move forward until suddenly the boys shoved her in and shut the door. She shrieked in fear and immediately turned around and strived to pry the door open. The three boys held onto the knob keeping her in while laughing at her panic.

"What's the matter?" Cody asked the terrified little girl.

"I thought you were a big girl?" Trevor added.

"You all are big meanies!" she shouted from inside the house while still pulling on the door with all the strength she could muster. "Let me out! I'm scared, please let me out!" she begged the older boys to release her from the dark prison.

"Sorry! You have to stay in there until we say you can come out." John stated, "And if you're a good little girl and don't yell anymore, we _may_ let you out early." The other two snickered.

"Please!" she gave up pulling on the door and continued to shout at them in her fright, "It's dark and scary in here and I wanna go home!" stomping her foot she started to sob but tried to keep it quiet, not wanting the boys to know she was crying.

Trevor whispered to the others that he had rope they could use to tie the door shut. He took one end and tied it to a nearby tree and handed the other end to Cody who tied it to the door knob. John made sure that the door was kept shut during the setup. All three laughed and walked away, while Amelia persisted on shouting at them to come back and let her go.

"With the brat out of the way," John stated, "now we can go pull pranks on everyone!"

"Yeah, ok who's got the toilet paper?" Cody asked while they all continued to walk away from the house.

Amelia was convinced that they were gone and were not going to come back anytime soon. Slowly, with blurred vision from her tears, turned to look at her surroundings. It was just an old house that had been abandoned a few years back and it was obvious that spiders had moved in from all the webs that hung practically everywhere. She squeaked in fear and, after building up her courage, ran through the house to the kitchen looking for another exit. Anxiously, she tried the back door but found it stuck and couldn't get out that way. She looked for a window but they were all too small. She ran back into the room that was once the living room and searched frantically for a way out. There was only one possible exit. There was a large window on the wall behind a couch that had rotted from being exposed to the weather for the window was shattered. It was far too risky to crawl through the window as it was because it still had many jagged and sharp edges from the broken glass. She looked for a small chair or something that she could use to clear away the glass. Finding none, she looked to the bookcase that miraculously still had a few books remaining. She was afraid to approach the shelf for it had many webs covering it. She took a deep breath and quickly grabbed a book before dropping it to the ground with a yelp of fear, cringing at the creepy feel of the webs on her hand. Amelia shook her hand rapidly to try and banish the unwanted feeling. She then picked up the book. It was a volume of an encyclopedia that had once been on the shelf. Caring little for the information that the book held, she stood on the couch and began to slam it against the glass, clearing it away. Finally, she made a large gap that she could easily slip through. She got off the couch to grab her pumpkin basket she had dropped and then stood back on the sofa. Once again she took a deep breath and dashed out the window landing on her hands and knees. Her heart was racing from the adrenaline rushing through her and was gasping for air in an attempt to calm herself down. Still trembling, she looked up and came to face the dense forest before her. The branches of the trees bore no leaves giving the night a creepy feel and the ghostlike glow from the full moon only made it the more terrifying. Between the forest and the group of boys, she chose the forest as the less frightening of the two.

After a short while, she had found a path and absently began to follow it. She felt the air around her became stale and the darkness of the night seemed to enclose itself around her except the light from the moon that still shined even if a bit dimly. The stars faded into the blanket that was the night sky. The trees seemed to grow taller and the branches began to look more like arms with lengthy fingers reaching out to grab her. She quickened her pace as she felt the eeriness grow to the point it was suffocating her. She began to run in a desperate attempt to escape the terror that seemed to be trapping her within the darkness of the night. She felt as if time had stopped around her as she reached a circle of trees. She entered the circle of the trees that had a strange white bark. She found herself in the center and facing what looked like drawings on the trunks, one drawing per tree. She recognized the pictures as the holidays of the year and as she peered closer to each of them, she noticed that they all looked like doors. Out of curiosity, she reached out to the door in the form of a jack-o-lantern. She hesitated before suddenly jerking open the pumpkin shaped door and she came face to face with a hollow trunk. With curiosity still nagging at her in the back of her mind, she peered inside further. Finding nothing she backed out of the tree and without warning, a gust of wind encircled her. She noticed the wind was black as it enveloped her and began to pull her closer to the inside of the trunk. Fight as she may, it was no use and was pulled into the tree as she let out a scream. Her cry echoed and died away into the dark forest. There was no longer a trace of her ever being there.

She covered her eyes in hopes that it was only a nightmare and tried to convince herself to wake up. She landed with a thud as she was dropped by the wind onto the ground. She heard the sound of crunching leaves beneath her and opened her eyes. She was sitting in front of an old wooden sign that had white letters painted on it. Squinting, she read the words aloud, "Halloween Town." As she looked at her surroundings she noticed behind her was at the edge of a forest with dense trees, much like the ones she had been in before. Before her were hills that reminded her of the pumpkin patch fields she had once been to when she was back at home. Also, in the distance was indeed a town, which she presumed was the Halloween Town the sign was pointing to. A breeze blew and swept up a few leaves which sent them in a spiral motion towards a dirt path. She followed the path with her eyes and assumed it was the main road to the town in the distance. She got up, picked up her jack-o-lantern basket, and began to walk down the road in hopes of finding someone who could tell her where she was and how she could get back home.

As Amelia neared the town, she heard music, singing, and cheering. She ducked behind a few buildings and bushes as she made her approach to the main square where all the excitement seemed to be originating from. She could then make out the words to the song that the voices were singing.

This is Halloween, this is Halloween

Halloween! Halloween! Halloween! Halloween!  
In this town we call home  
Everyone hail to the pumpkin song

In this town, don't we love it now?  
Everybody's waiting for the next surprise

Round that corner, man hiding in the trash can  
Something's waiting now to pounce, and how you'll

Scream! This is Halloween  
Red 'n' black, slimy green

Aren't you scared?

Well, that's just fine  
Say it once, say it twice  
Take the chance and roll the dice  
Ride with the moon in the dead of night

Everybody scream, everybody scream

In our town of Halloween

I am the clown with the tear-away face  
Here in a flash and gone without a trace

I am the "who" when you call, "Who's there?"  
I am the wind blowing through your hair

I am the shadow on the moon at night  
Filling your dreams to the brim with fright 

Amelia had sneaked behind a large black cauldron and peered over the side. She gasped at the horror. She saw all sorts of creatures only seen in nightmares or heard in the scary stories told around a campfire. She thought such creatures where all make believe but she was seeing them for _real_. She wished she wasn't. Paralyzed from fear, she watched the monsters continue to dance and sing.

This is Halloween, this is Halloween  
Halloween! Halloween! Halloween! Halloween!  
Halloween! Halloween!

Tender lumplings everywhere  
Life's no fun without a good scare

That's our job, but we're not mean  
In our town of Halloween

In this town  
Don't we love it now?  
Everyone's waiting for the next surprise

Skeleton Jack might catch you in the back  
And scream like a banshee  
Make you jump out of your skin  
This is Halloween, everyone scream  
Won't ya please make way for a very special guy

Our man Jack is king of the pumpkin patch  
Everyone hail to the Pumpkin King now

This is Halloween, this is Halloween  
Halloween! Halloween! Halloween! Halloween!

In this town we call home  
Everyone hail to the pumpkin song 

Amelia then saw a scarecrow with a pumpkin for a head arrive on a straw horse. It had a worn, tattered red jacket with legs made out of straw. It then grabbed a torch, set itself on fire and began to dance. Everyone was cheering and singing. She heard the names "Jack" and "Pumpkin King" several times and presumed that the scarecrow was whom they were referring to. The scarecrow then dived into the stone fountain which had a green oozy liquid instead of water coming from the statue of a fearsome creature's mouth. It was then that Amelia saw what she considered to be the most frightening thing she ever saw in her life up to that point. A skeleton in a black pinstripe suit rose out of the green slime. Her pupils shrank into practically microscopic dots as she watched "Jack" being praised by the creatures. She willed her legs to move but she stayed frozen in her place from fear. She could only continue to watch the scene before her. Everyone had ceased their singing and they were now cheering for The Pumpkin King. He seemed to be congratulating them on their Halloween as "our most horrible yet."

She almost let out a squeal of fright as she watched the king walk towards the cauldron. A cat had jumped onto a trashcan lid behind her making a rather loud noise, startling the cowering girl. She leaped out of her hiding place and found herself standing before a slightly surprised Pumpkin King.

After a brief moment of silence, he grinned, "Hello there fellow creature of the night! Who might you be and what brings you to our town of Halloween?"

Feeling absolutely lost and scared now even more than she had been, she opened her mouth as to either reply or scream, but nothing came out. She paled and then took off like a bullet speeding out of town.

The tall, slender skeleton stood there baffled and very confused as he watched her run toward the direction of the gate that eventually led to the cemetery.

He was then distracted by a stout man with two faces and a tall top hat calling to him. "Jack! Come, come. We're going to start giving out the awards!" the overly excited man shouted to him.

"I'll be right there Mayor!" Jack shouted back as he walked back into the square with one last glance in the direction she had gone.

Once the award ceremony began, Jack grew bored very quickly. He stifled a yawn as the mayor handed an award to a vampire on the platform. As the next was handed out, he decided he would make his escape. Being as agile and quick as he could, he made his exit. Curiosity got the better of him as he decided to follow the path the girl had taken earlier. He wanted to find out who she was, where she was from, and why she was here. He had always found outsiders very fascinating. He left through the old, rusty gate and walked up and down several hills before finally coming to the cemetery gate. As quiet as he could, he opened it and walked in slowly, looking and listening among the graves for the little girl. He soon spotted her curled against one of the many tombstones with her arms folded across her knees, her head buried against her forearms and an orange pumpkin basket beside her. He inched closer and could make out small sobs. He didn't want to frighten her so he hid behind a nearby statue and waited.

Amelia was indeed crying as she was huddled against the cold, slightly angled, and smooth stone. The worst of her crying was over a short moment before. Now, only small sobs escaped her. "Why…why can't I…be brave?" she managed to speak in between her weeping. "Like John? He and…the others are…are just meanie faces! The kind that…that like to pick on little kids…like me." She took a deep breath to calm herself as well as to form sentences properly. "I wanna go home. I don't like this place, it's scary." She hugged her arms attempting to comfort herself, "I wish I wasn't so scared. I bet John and the others aren't scared of monsters like me."

Jack's eye sockets widened, showing his surprise as he was hit with realization. A human had wondered into Halloween Town! 'I've never met a human before without scaring them half to death.' Jack thought to himself. 'This little girl seems to be very intriguing. Imagine what new kinds of tricks I could learn from her!' he was very eager to talk to her but knew that she was fearful so, rather impatiently, he waited.

Amelia looked up to the eerie yellow moon with a wishful look in her eyes, "Please," she began, "someone, make me unafraid. I don't want to be scared anymore but, I can't do it alone."

As Jack heard her words, ideas sparked in his skull on how he could trade her ideas for his helping her to overcome her fears. He was about to make himself known when her voice stopped him in his tracks.

A soft, melodic song came from the timid girl. She sang a song with no words at first and as her confidence in her own abilities grew, so did her voice. She added words to her lulling song.

_It pulls at me, like a melody,_

_Quietly through my mind;_

_It blossoms like spring flowers_

_And wafts away like a fragrance._

_But when it is captured in words,_

_And placed before my eyes,_

_It turns pale like a gray mist_

_And disappears like a breath._

_And yet, remaining in my rhymes_

_There hides still a fragrance,_

_Which mildly from the quiet bud_

_Can be summoned forth by tears._

He was entranced by her voice and the music, Jack found his mind wandering and felt like he wasn't even part of his body anymore.

Any trace of Amelia's crying was now gone as she finished the song. She looked up at the bright moon that seemed to no longer glow of eeriness but of comfort. She gave a deep, yet happy sigh as she watched the stars glitter in the black sky. She heard the crunching of leaves behind her. With a gasp, she turned around and once again came face to face with the Pumpkin King.

She screamed.

Once she had finally ceased her high-pitched shriek she realized he hadn't moved at all. She took better notice of what he looked like. A black pin-stripe suit with a collar that looked like a bat and he had no body so to speak, only bones. He didn't have any eyes either but you could still see expression on his face, but instead of a face it was a skull. She questioned herself how could a skeleton be standing before her _alive_? She looked closer at the expression held on his pale face. He didn't seem like he even noticed her, almost as if he was trapped in his own world. 'Wait,' she thought, 'did I do that to him? Maybe…' she stood up before the skeleton man. With a shaky voice, she spoke, "Y-you silly Pumpkin King," remembering his title, "You sh-should never listen to me sing."

Her rhyme broke him of his trance. Jack shook his head and then placed his bony hand upon it. Finally, he noticed of the still frightened little girl before him. He gave her his signature grin and a bow, "Hello, my name is Jack, The Pumpkin King. I'm pleased to meet you." He stood back up to his full height and offered his hand to her for a handshake.

Nervously, she placed her hand on her mouth, unsure if she should trust him. She looked at the extended hand in front of her and then back up to him and his smile. Timidly, with her other hand, she grasped his in which he gave a gentle shake. To her, his hand felt very cold and strange, she couldn't quite place the feel of the bone.

"And who might you be?" he asked, beaming at the little girl as he let go of her hand.

"I…I—" she found herself at a loss of words for a brief moment, "I'm Amelia."

He nodded, "And where might you be from?" He looked to her with much curiosity.

Her hand yet again went up to her mouth and she looked down to her boots. She shifted a little and began to tremble. She was still very fearful of the skeleton before her. "I…I'm from Samhain…where am I exactly?" she asked looking back up at Jack.

Slightly taken aback, he answered, "Why you're in Halloween Town of course!" He had shouted a bit loudly with enthusiasm.

"I know that." She said quietly, "I mean _where_ am I? All I know is that I got here through a tree."

"A tree?" puzzled, Jack placed his hand on his chin in thought. "Did this tree have a picture of a smiling pumpkin on it?"

Her eyes widened a bit and hastily nodded her head. "Yeah, there were other trees with other pictures on them too." Hope began to rise within her.

"I knew it!" he swung his arm in front of him with sudden understanding, "You came here through the Holiday Doors. So, you're a human from the human realm right?" he questioned with a slightly puzzled yet curious look on his face.

Slightly shocked, her eyes widened and nodded her head once again.

"Ha! I knew it all along!" as Jack's enthusiasm continued to grow he waved his arms about in animated gestures and moved around excitedly, "Imagine the possibilities! You must tell me all about your world."

Amelia gave him a quizzical look, trying to understand his sudden outburst of happiness. "Um…so I'm in another world?"

He stopped his parading and turned back to her, "Yes, so to speak." A light bulb seemed to have just clicked on within his mind. "Of course!" he lightly hit his head with his hand, "That explains why I was hypnotized."

More confused than ever, she cocked her head to the side, "Huh?"

He put his hands over the area where his diaphragm was supposed to be and let out a rather high-pitched cackle. His laugh caused her to take a few steps back in her ever present fear.

He calmed down, "Forgive me, it's just the fact that you're a human explains everything!" seeing her puzzled expression he explained, "Any human who wonders into Halloween Town immediately becomes the costume that they are wearing."

Amelia looked at her outfit, she didn't feel or seem different than how she was before.

He kneeled to be eyelevel with her, "So tell me, what _are_ you?" one eye socket seemed to grow slightly larger, implying that he was raising his eyebrow if he had any.

"I'm supposed to be a sorceress." She replied meekly, avoiding his gaze.

"Ah, that explains even more! Your song had put me into a trance. If you had ordered me to do something I probably would have." A thought occurred to him, "How exactly did you break the spell?"

"I…um…just made up a rhyme." She spoke, still very timid.

"This is marvelous! You'll fit in just fine." He grinned literally from ear to ear.

Still not quite following, she tilted her head again and gave him a confused look. "Fit in? Fit in where?"

"Why in Halloween Town of course!" he exclaimed cheerily.

Her eyes widened and pupils shrank. The idea of going back to that place of monsters and ghouls brought her fear back full force. She backed away shaking her head and putting both of her hands to her mouth. "No, I don't wanna go back to that scary place!"

Jack stood up to attempt to reason with her, "Come now, I am the Pumpkin King therefore the scariest creature of them all! If you can stand up to me, what's stopping you from facing them?"

She pondered his question and she couldn't find a reasonable answer, "Well, I'm still kinda scared of you, but you're only one person. Not a whole town."

"Hmm…" Jack took a moment to think before coming up with a solution. He snapped his fingers, "You said it yourself that you wanted someone to help you overcome your fears. Well, I can help you." Seeing her disbelieving expression he continued, "I promise you that I can. You know, to be fearsome you must be fearless and I am the most feared of all!" he placed his hands on his hip bones as to make a point, "So don't you tell me that I don't know how to overcome fears."

Amelia shifted her weight from one foot to the other while looking away in thought. Her gaze then met his. She could tell that he wasn't lying to her and he seemed to be trustworthy, "Alright, I'll accept your help."

His wide grin returned yet again, "Good! But I do have one condition."

Amelia hadn't expected there would be an obligation to his offer.

"I'll help you conquer your fears if you agree to tell me all about how your kind celebrates Halloween." He stated.

For the first time since she had arrived, a small smile graced her lips, "I agree."

"Shake on it?" Jack extended his hand.

She took his hand in hers, sealing the deal.

He released his hand from hers, "Now, no one else can know where you are from and that you're really a human got it?"

She gave a curt nod, "But why?"

"Well…" he trailed off, unsure of what to say. He sighed, "Most of the citizens do not trust humans and…it's rather hard to explain really." He put a finger to his mouth in thought, "How do I say this…" he made his mind up, "There's a belief that if humans find our world as well as the other holidays then havoc would arise and the holidays would be no more."

"What!? That's crazy, everyone loves the holidays." Amelia denied the impossible belief.

"Think about that, what would happen if adults from your world found Halloween Town. What do you think they would do to us?" he inquired.

Like he had asked, she thought over his question, and didn't like what she came up with. Children would rejoice if they found the holidays but the adults? They would probably jump to conclusions and who knows what they would do. "I see…so what are we gonna do?"

His ever present smile returned, "A cover story of course! You will be a sorceress from far away who has come to…" he hadn't actually thought that far on what her cover would be. He looked at her and was struck with inspiration, "I know! How about your "parents" sent you here under my care to become acquainted to Halloween for you are going to live here someday. They believe that you will one day become a fearsome sorceress of Halloween!"

"Sounds good to me." Amelia nodded.

"Splendid! Come now, I'm sure the Mayor is at his wits end by now." Jack grabbed her hand and began to lead her to town. She followed, albeit a little reluctantly.

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**Some info on my characters: Amelia is actually based off of myself as a nine year old. I was shy and scared of anything remotely spooky, though I had the curiousity that killed the cat. The three boys at the begining aren't real people but they do represent the bullies that I grew up with, though they were never _that_ mean. **

**Thanks for reading! **


	2. A Sorceress

**Alright! The next chapter is here!! Thank you so much JainaZekk621 for your review! I really appreciate it!! **

**Disclaimer: Honestly, if I owned the Nightmare Before Christmas then I know I've entered the Twilight Zone. **

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All too soon for Amelia the town came into view as they continued to walk down the old, worn path. Many of the houses and buildings were slanted, twisted, and awkwardly angled. It could be best described as something you would see in a twisted children's storybook, only scary. She spotted ghosts flying over the town moaning and making all kinds of frightful noises. She wanted to run back but Jack still had her hand in his grip. Unlike the timid little girl beside him, Jack was very optimistic. There was even a skip in his step as he walked, pulling her alongside him. Her hand that wasn't currently in his hold was once again fisted at her mouth, signifying her ever growing fear. They came to the old rusty gate that led into town and as he pushed it open the stout mayor with the tall top hat came rushing towards them as fast as his legs could carry him.

"Jack! Oh thank goodness I've found you. Everyone is panicking! We all thought that…" he took notice of the trembling girl beside him, "Who's this?" his pale, worried expression switched to his happier, jolly face.

Seeing the man change faces, her eyes grew larger in terror as she tried to hide behind the lean skeleton next to her. Jack let go of her hand and kneeled beside her to put his hand on her shoulder, reassuring the scared child. "Mayor, this is Amelia." He turned towards the man in front of him as he gestured to her with his other hand, "She was lost and I directed her back here, turns out she was looking for Halloween Town."

"Oh a newcomer!" he grinned and held out his hand, "I'm pleased to meet you."

Amelia tried to hide behind Jack again but his hand on her shoulder prevented her from doing so. She looked to Jack and he offered a comforting smile, well as comforting a smile from a skeleton could get. She looked back to the two-faced man before her and, putting her faith into Jack's bony fingers, shook the mayor's hand.

"Shy little one isn't she?" he spoke with his ever present smile for that particular face. He adjusted his coat before speaking again, "Well enough dilly dallying. We need to let everyone know you are alright Jack."

"Mayor, you worry too much." He waved the ever anxious mayor off, "As you can see I'm perfectly fine, I had left because I was supposed to find Amelia. I'm her caretaker during her stay."

"Ca-caretaker!?" the mayor's face turned back to the worried expression, "But Jack, you can't _baby-sit_! You're the Pumpkin King and we must start planning for next year's Halloween tomorrow. There's only 364 days left you know."

"Please, I accepted the job and I am perfectly capable of multitasking." He said calmly.

"But Jack—"

"Enough." he cut the mayor off and stood up to his full height, towering over both the Mayor and Amelia. With a stern stare he continued, "If I say it's alright then it's alright. Got it?"

The mayor understood the implied meaning. He needed to remember his place. Ironically, it was always the mayor who would remind Jack that it was the Pumpkin King's job to make all the decisions. He lowered his head, "As you wish Jack." He turned and headed into town. Discreetly, Amelia had taken a few steps back in the opposite direction of where Jack stood.

The skeleton looked to the trembling girl, "Sorry you had to see that." He scratched the top of his skull, "Well, shall we?" he then finally noticed how frightened she was. "Amelia," he kneeled to be eyelevel with her. She took another step back in fear. Jack sighed, "I'm truly sorry. I know that's not my most pleasant side but I never intended to scare you so much." A kindhearted expression spread across his face. Her hand was still on her mouth but she nodded in understanding. Jack extended his hand, gesturing for her to take it. Still a little timid, she placed her other hand in his and they once again headed into town.

When she had regained her courage to speak, she moved her hand from her mouth to her side and turned to Jack, "How can I get home?"

He looked to her, "You want to go home already?" he joked.

Amelia smiled at his light humor, "I'm still kinda lost, that's all." She clarified.

"Oh well then all you need to do is go the same way you came." He grinned as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

She thought for a moment, "Oh you mean the holiday doors right?" His nod confirmed her question. She carried on, "But where are they? When I came here I landed in front of a sign that said 'Halloween Town.' "

"Tell you what," he started, "if you stay here for a little while and keep your end of the bargain then I'd be more than happy to take you home."

"But, I can't stay here a long time 'cause momma will worry." She objected.

"No need to fret about that." He waved off the matter, "time has stopped for your world. It will whenever you visit Halloween Town." He explained.

"Why is that?" puzzled, she cocked her head to the side.

"Not sure really," he touched his chin in thought, "but we can worry about that small detail later."

She frowned, still unsure about everything but nodded her head. "Alright."

Hearing her agree, he suddenly swept her up with one arm, holding her against him. She let out a squeak of surprise and clung to his collar. She looked up to him, her expression asking for an explanation. "I don't want you running away on me." Jack said with a smile.

She opened her mouth to protest but then she looked at her surroundings. Monsters and ghouls of all kinds were around them, bustling around and busying themselves with whatever scary tasks they needed to do. When she took notice of all their terrifying attributes, which was what made them the creatures of Halloween, it was no wonder that he thought she would run away. All she wanted to do at that moment was to flee and get as far away from this place as possible. She froze in his grip as two petite witches approached them. As soon as they spoke, her hand shot up to her mouth.

"Well who might this tiny terror be?" one witch with a long nose asked the skeleton.

With his normal ever present smile, he explained, "This is Amelia, a newcomer and she will be staying here for a while." He looked toward the frightened girl who seemed to plead for him to let her free, "Go on," he urged her to speak. "Say hello." When she didn't respond He noticed both witches getting impatient, "She's a little shy which is part of the reason why she's here."

With understanding, they gave a nod. "It's alright little terror," the other, even shorter witch than the first, spoke, "you'll be frightening little children in no time." They both let out a cackle which only increased her fear.

Jack also gave a laugh, but a good natured one, "I have no doubt in my mind that she will become a fearsome sorceress."

"A sorceress?" the first witch asked, "We haven't had one of those in a while."

"Yeah, the last one was so delightful." They both grimaced in disgust. "I bet she'll repair her kind's reputation. Won't you?" the other asked Amelia.

She dumbly nodded her head, a little unsure of what was going on. Satisfied, the two small witches walked away. She once again gave the Pumpkin King a questioning look.

"Here in Halloween Town," he began as they walked through the square, "Things are probably backwards to you. Delightful is horrible for instance. You see, here what you would consider awful or terrifying is seen as good whereas good things to you are considered disgusting here. Is that making any sense at all?"

"I understand…" she moved her hand from her mouth, "sort of."

She was introduced to many citizens using the cover story Jack had made and with each visit her courage grew, albeit only a little. Jack was pleased that she was responding so well. His ever present grin only seemed to grow wider. However, his smile fell slightly as someone approached them.

"Jack my boy! Good to see you." A bald man in an automatic wheelchair with a duck-like mouth addressed said skeleton, "I see you have with you a…" he lowered his glasses slightly and squinted, "Ahh, a sorceress correct?"

"Yes Doctor," he responded, "This is Amelia. She'll be staying here in Halloween Town for a while and I'm introducing her to everyone!" his smile returned. "Amelia, this is Doctor Finklestein. He's a genius you know. He can make anything and knows everything!"

Amelia gave a nod as her greeting, debating on whether the doctor was really scary or not. Then quietly, she said hello.

"Pleasure to meet you, and Jack you give me too much credit, even if it is true." He gave a laugh.

Jack joined in with his own chuckle, "Well Doctor, I need to ask you something concerning little Amelia here."

Hearing this, Jack had the doctor's full attention if he hadn't had it before. "Yes of course, anything Jack."

"Would you happen to have any books on sorcery?" he asked, "It's part of my job to help her improve her skills."

"Oh really?" Doctor Finklestein was intrigued. "Eh, what do you mean by job anyway?"

"Well you see Doctor, Amelia's parents sent her here to become acquainted with Halloween and everyone involved for she is going to live here someday." He spoke with excitement. "I being a good friend of theirs promised to look after her while she was here and they requested that I help her master her abilities."

"I see." The doctor popped open his head like a lid and scratched his brain. Seeing this, Amelia clutched onto Jack's suit in fear. "Well," the doctor began, "I'm not sure. Why don't you both come inside and I'll check." His wheelchair turned him around and headed toward his home, which resembled an observatory.

"Wonderful!" Jack said. He then set Amelia down to stand on her own two feet. He kneeled to be face to face with her, "Now Amelia," he whispered, "You must be careful around the Doctor. I wasn't lying when I said he knew everything. So don't tell him too much about yourself or else he may find out your identity."

She nodded in compliance. He stood up again to his full height and subconsciously, Amelia took hold of his hand as they began to follow the doctor inside his home.

Unbeknownst to any of them, three little miscreants wearing costumes had been watching Amelia and Jack. They where hidden behind a bush near Doctor Finklestein's home. However, they hadn't been able to hear Jack whispering to the little girl. Once they were sure that the king, the newcomer, and the doctor were inside they dashed out of their hiding spot and into town. They stopped by a stone wall where no one was around.

"Can you believe it?" a short boy in a skeleton costume asked.

"A sorceress?" a taller boy in a devil's costume spoke.

"In Halloween Town?" questioned a girl in a purple witch's costume.

"Now way!" all three chorused.

"Think we should tell boss?" the skeleton imitator inquired.

"Of course dummy!" the witch conked him in the head.

"Ow! What'd you do that for?" he shot back.

"I wonder why Jack has so much interest in her." The devil pondered.

"I think they're not telling us everything. Let's spy some more!" the witch commanded, the obvious leader of the group.

"Yeah!" the two boys chimed in.

"There are many kinds of sorcery," The doctor said as he browsed through his vast library, "what are your specialties Amelia?"

Unsure of herself, she looked to Jack for help. Seeing her slight distress he stepped in, "She has the power to hypnotize people." he pointed out with excitement.

"Hmm…how?" Doctor Finklestein asked his leader.

"She sings." The Pumpkin King beamed.

"_Singing_ eh?" he turned to look at the questioned little girl. She shifted slightly under his gaze, "Interesting…" he turned back to the bookshelf before him.

Amelia took notice of the room, it was a rather large laboratory but junk and unfinished experiments were everywhere. She walked over to a counter that had a flask upon it with a strange purple liquid substance. Reaching out she almost grasped the object of curiosity when a bony white hand had batted hers away. She looked up to Jack to see him shaking his head. He mouthed the words 'Don't touch anything.'

"Ah ha! Found it!" he grabbed an old, brown colored book off the shelf and began to move himself over to Jack.

Both of them turned to the doctor as he approached them. He handed Jack the book and opened he opened it up. He turned the pages with his bony fingers looking at the instructional pictures.

"It's the only copy I have so don't lose it." He said this more to Amelia then to Jack, not only because she was a little girl but because of his respect and admiration for the king. Feeling she had to, she nodded her head in understanding of the doctor's wish.

"Don't you worry," Jack reassured the slightly precautious doctor, "it will return to you just like it was when it left." He smiled.

"Good." Doctor Finklestein shifted the controller on the chair's arm to turn himself around and began to move away from them. "Now I have some experiments to finish. I believe you know the way out."

"Yes Doctor. Thank you so much." Jack said with a smile then walked out of the doctor's home with Amelia trailing close behind.

Unseen by them once again, the three trick-or-treaters moved from their hiding spot behind the bush and began to pursue the unsuspecting pair.

"Jack," Amelia got the attention of the lean skeleton next to her, "Where am I gonna stay?" she had pondered the question herself while in the laboratory and thought she should to ask.

"With me of course!" he stated cheerily. He then saw her disbelieving look, "There are plenty of rooms in my home. Just wait until you see it!" he then took her hand and began to lead her in the direction of his house.

The three who had been tailing them came to an abrupt halt and then jumped into some bushes. "This only makes it even harder!" the devil-costume wearing boy said.

"How are we gonna nab her if Jack is with her every minute?" the shorter, skeleton-costume wearing boy asked the girl dressed as a witch.

"Hmm…" she thought for a moment, "We need to tell boss about this."

"Yeah, he'll know what to do!" the shortest boy exclaimed.

"He will be most pleased with our findings." The devil commented.

The three let out high-pitched laughs as they dashed off to their boss's lair.

Jack pushed open a rusty and crooked metal gate that served as the entrance to his front yard. The house, Amelia thought, was quite strange and probably something you would find in a whacky picture book, except the house wasn't all that colorful, just different shades of browns to give it a frightful appearance. The stone steps that were practically a large and steep staircase lead straight to the front door. The space behind the door seemed to be no larger than a big closet. It seemed that there was a staircase leading up to the second floor which is where the actual home was. It looked as if the house was on a stool or a pedestal of some sort. There was even a front balcony. Jutting outward from the roof was what looked to be a large pipe of some sort which slanted more upward at a weird angle with another kind of living quarter atop of it. All together it looked like a warped tower. After climbing the steps to the front door, they entered and sure enough there was a staircase leading into the main house.

Once they reached the top of the stairs, Jack led her down a corridor and reached the extra bedroom that would be Amelia's. He opened the door and it gave an eerie creak before coming to a stop. Flicking on the light switch he ushered her inside. As to be expected, the room was rather plain, well as plain as something in Halloween Town could get. Crimson drapes hung at each side of the large window adjacent to the bed with black sheets and pillows. The carpet was gray in color as well as the walls of the room, but darker. The color of the chest of drawers reminded Amelia of a burnt wood and it was a little warped. A full length mirror stood next to the deformed black closet doors. The frame of the mirror was a dark colored wood much like the drawers. The light source was an electric chandelier in the center of the ceiling which adorned many cobwebs from its age and because it obviously hadn't been used in years. Noticing this, Amelia took another quick glance around the room and noticed that a lot of cobwebs were everywhere but besides that and dust, it was still a rather nice room.

She turned to him and smiled, "Thank you Jack."

"No thanks needed, it's the least I can do. Though I'm sorry the room hasn't been cleaned in a few decades." He gave her a sheepish smile. "I wasn't expecting any visitors." He laughed.

She looked at her feet feeling somewhat ashamed for 'dropping in' so suddenly.

"It's honestly not a problem." An idea dawned on him, "In fact, I'll make sure that the housekeeper cleans this place up tomorrow."

"You don't have to do that for me." She looked back up to him protesting.

"Oh but I must! After all, you're my guest and I am your host so I must treat you with the up most respect." He beamed at her.

"Ok, thank you." She offered a kind smile.

"Wonderful!" he glanced at the old grandfather clock in the corner of the room. "My, is it that late already?" he gave a yawn, "Well I do believe it's time to check in. I'll see you in the morning Amelia." He was just about to make his leave when he turned around as if remembering something, "Oh yes, if you need anything I'm just up the staircase that leads to the tower. Don't be afraid to wake me." He smiled at her once again and left without another word, his footsteps fading into silence.

After a minute or so, Amelia yawned herself. Realizing she had no sleep wear, she walked over to the closet doors and opened them up. They were quite bare but there was some article of clothing on a hanger towards the back edge of the closet. She reached in and brought out a small, white nightgown. It was some what tattered at the bottom so she presumed it was that of a ghost costume. Taking off her own, she put on the nightgown and found it fit rather well. It came down just below her knees but the sleeves where a little long. Shrugging, she clicked off the light and crawled underneath the covers. Once she was settled in and had closed her eyes, the day's events kept flashing within her mind, keeping her from succumbing to a blissful sleep. Her eyes opened and her surroundings looked much different. The furniture, doors, and walls seemed to grow taller while the shadows cast from the full moon's glow just outside the window grew longer. She clutched the edge of the silky, black comforter and pulled it up above her nose as if it would banish all of the frightful things before her. The moon's light also reflected off the cobwebs, making them look extremely haunting, as if the spiders and ghosts where just waiting for her to fall asleep so they could catch her within their cold, scary clutches. The grandfather clock in the corner of the room chimed and with each clang, the sound seemed to drone on longer than the last. Amelia gave a small whimper before at last pulling the sheets above her head, turning to the side and pulling her knees up to her chest. She forcefully shut her eyes and desperately willed herself to try and go to sleep. It was going to be a long night.

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**Well, that's it for chapter 2!! My favorite line in this chapter was 'She looked to Jack and he offered a comforting smile, well comforting a smile from a skeleton could get.' Haha! I love it!! Tell me what your favorite part was in your review! **


	3. It Begins

**Hey everyone, hope you enjoyed the first two chapters! This chapter is so far the best one yet!** **I spent a lot of time on this one and it came out really good. Enjoy! Thanks to those who reviewed!! **

Disclaimer: I don't own The Nightmare Before Christmas or _Husaybe Mountain._

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Amelia did finally go to sleep after a while. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be a peaceful slumber. Her dreams were filled with nightmares of monsters attacking her, ghouls scaring her to death, and worst of all, Jack betraying her trust and letting such awful things happen to her. Even more, in her nightmares, Jack was the one who was doing most of the scaring. She woke up in a cold sweat, screaming. She momentarily forgot where she was as she looked around the room in a panic. She ceased her screaming but her breaths was still rapid and heavy as she desperately tried to figure out what had happened that she ended up in such a place. 

Immediately Jack came rushing in, albeit a little wobbly from just waking up. "Wha? Who? What's going on?" he asked tiredly, trying to shake off the sleep.

Seeing a skeleton in pale colored night clothes and a matching nightcap caused her to let out another shriek of fright as tears streamed down her cheeks. Having fully woken up from the siren of her voice, he realized she must have forgotten where she was. "Amelia it's me! Jack, Jack Skellington, your friend." He tried to calm the terrified child who had stopped her shriek once he spoke but was still crying a waterfall of tears as he walked slowly towards her. "It's alright, you're in Halloween Town remember? You said you landed in front of a sign that read Halloween Town when you had entered through the jack-o-lantern shaped door in the woods." He reached her bedside as she seemed to finally remember yesterday's events.

It all came rushing back towards her like a tidal wave and she immediately felt a little lightheaded. "Jack?" she asked in her delirious state, tears finally ceasing their cascade down her face.

"Yes it's me. You were having a nightmare, are you alright now?" he kneeled by her bedside.

"Uh-huh." She sniffled, still a little shaken.

"Good." He said as he let a held breath.

A floating dog that appeared to only be a hovering sheet with long ears gently flapping in a nonexistent wind glided into the room, its glowing jack-o-lantern nose lighting up the darkness. Amelia scooted back further, practically onto her pillows as she watched the ghost dog enter the room.

"It's alright Amelia," Jack said as the dog glided above her bed near him, "This is Zero, my loyal friend." He said as he patted the dog's translucent head. It seemed to be smiling at her happily.

Amelia calmed and moved back down a little so she wasn't on the pillows anymore. She stared at Zero curiously, cocking her head as if in thought. The dog floated over to her side and she warily gave him a pat on the head. His smile seemed to grow as he nuzzled her and gave a small bark. She giggled as the dog tickled her. Jack also laughed at the sight. Suddenly, a thought occurred to him.

"Wait right here." He said as he got up and left the room leaving both Zero and Amelia with questioning looks. He quickly came back, sat next to her on the bed, and held out something small to the little girl.

It was a teddy bear and, much to her surprise, it wasn't scary looking at all. In fact, it looked rather out of place compared to Halloween. She graciously took the bear and hugged it with a cheery smile on her face. "Thank you." She said as she looked to the kind hearted skeleton before her.

"You're very welcome. I thought you'd like it." He grinned. "It was a gift from Sandy Claws."

She gave him a look of slight confusion and then he caught his mistake. "Sorry, I mean _Santa Claus_." He corrected himself.

Her eyes brightened up at the name, "You know Santa Claus?" smiling at Jack.

"Do I?" one of his eye sockets elongated, implying he was raising an eyebrow. "I'm friends with good ol' Santa. He gave this bear to me a while back, said that it was for someone who I thought would need it." He smiled at the memory, "I hadn't had a clue what he was talking about then, but I guess good ol' Sandy knew something before I did. And I'm guessing that something was you." He gently poked her in the nose as he said those last words.

She giggled at the gesture. "Really?" her smile grew and her spirit rose. "I knew he was real! All the big kids said that he didn't exist but I knew it! I knew Santa would never let me down!" she beamed with excitement hugging the bear close to her.

"I had heard that humans to tend to 'grow out' of believing in Sandy Claws. So I guess it's true huh?" he pondered.

Grimly, she nodded her head. "I never want to stop believing." Her happy demeanor returned.

"Wonderful!" he smiled again, "I know Sandy really appreciates it whenever a child doesn't give up on him."

She beamed up at him once again before letting out a yawn and rubbing her eyes.

"Well, I guess it's time to go back to sleep," he said as he gave a yawn himself and got up from sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Jack?" she asked.

He turned around to face her, curiously wondering what she wanted.

"I'm still a little scared to go back to sleep." She admitted hugging the bear close to her.

He smiled, "I know the perfect solution. Do you like lullabies?" he questioned.

She gave a small smile and nodded her head.

"Well go ahead and get situated for sleep and I'll sing one for you." He beamed.

She was a little disbelieving at first, but she trusted him and got back under the covers while Zero curled up next to her.

He sat near her on the bed began to sing.

_It isn't far to Hushabye Mountain, _

_And your boat waits down by the key. _

_The winds of night so softly are sighing,_

_Soon they will fly your troubles to sea. _

_So close your eyes on Hushabye Mountain._

_Wave goodbye to cares of the day,_

_And watch your boat from Hushabye Mountain,_

_Sail faraway from Lullaby Bay. _

She was already starting to doze for her eyelids were growing heavy.

"Night, night Amelia. I promise you will have no more nightmares." He whispered. Then, he continued the song.

_So close your eyes on Hushabye Mountain._

_Wave goodbye to cares of the day,_

_And watch your boat from Hushabye Mountain_

_Sail faraway from Lullaby Bay. _

She finally had fallen asleep as did Zero. He gave a soft smile at her peaceful, serene form still hugging the bear. Jack beamed again before finally leaving the room, shutting the door behind him, but leaving it just a crack open and returned to his own quarters.

The next morning, Amelia woke to the rays of the sun shining through the window. She slowly sat up and raised her hand to block the bright light and then noticed Zero still curled up on the pillow next to her. At that moment, memories once again came rushing back to her, however the woozy feeling didn't return. She smiled, then looked down to the small teddy and cuddled it as she remembered Jack giving it to her to banish the nightmares and singing her the lullaby. It had worked. She hadn't had a single bad dream the rest of the night. Zero began to stir before waking up, giving the little girl a happy smile. "Morning Zero." She greeted him. He gave a yawn after smiling at her. He then floated out of the room to give her time to get up. She slid out of bed and donned her Halloween costume. She looked out the window again and noticed that the sun was in the form of a smiling jack-o-lantern. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say I was still dreaming." She then left the room to find Jack. She walked down the corridor trying to find the way to the tower. Thankfully, Zero came and led her to the right door as well as up the stairs. After climbing the winding staircase they finally reached the top of the tower.

Jack was already up, in his usual attire, and standing with his hands behind his back looking the window that faced town. "Morning little terror." He spoke as he turned to face her.

She gave a small smile and walked up to stand next to him with Zero still at her side. "Thank you so much for your gift. It really did take all the bad dreams away."

"It was nothing," he smiled, "although I am glad to see that it helped."

"Oh, and the lullaby you sang also helped me a lot too." She beamed up at him.

He chuckled as he gave a sheepish look, "No problem at all."

Zero then barked, catching the Pumpkin King's attention.

Jack chuckled, "Of course Zero scared away the nightmares too." He gestured to the floating dog that then gave a bark of satisfaction and received a grateful smile from the little girl.

Looking off in the distance, Jack placed his finger on his chin in thought, "Hmm…you know what?" he glanced at the small child next to him who looked back up to him, curiosity present in her eyes. "The name 'Amelia' just doesn't strike me as a fitting name for you if you are to stay here." He grasped his chin, pondering yet again before snapping his fingers as the light bulb clicked on above his head. "Ami!" he said, pronouncing it as _ah-me _instead of the traditional Amy. "I believe that's a suitable nickname, what do you think?" asking the girl beside him.

She looked out the window in consideration before turning to him, "I like it." She said with a smile.

"Wonderful!" He stated with excitement. He gestured for her to follow him. "Let's go ahead and start shall we?" He sat in the tall chair with wheels at his desk and picked up the borrowed book from Dr. Finklestein. Amelia stood beside him as he flipped through the pages. She found the book quite fascinating. It held many pictures of spells, incantations, and all sorts of magic. "Ah ha!" he exclaimed as he found what he was looking for, although he startled the girl beside him. "Ami," he said, trying out the new nickname, "the first thing I'm going to teach you is a book copying spell." When her curious expression changed to that of confusion he explained. "We don't want to ruin the Doctor's book so I figured we'd best have our own." He handed the book to her so she could read it.

She took the book and read over the spell. She couldn't even begin to understand what the text meant. "What is this?" she gave a puzzled expression.

"Oh, well I don't suppose you know Latin do you?" she gave a sheepish grin.

The look on her face basically told him '_How do you expect a nine year-old to know Latin?'_

So he got up from his chair and stood next to her, looking over her shoulder at the incantation. "It's simple really." He gestured for her to hand him the book and she complied. He held out the book to where they both could read it. Clearing his throat, he read, "_Per meus vox, voco vox of obscurum. Effingo is libri pro mihi quod emerge vegrandis_." He spoke with the perfect accent and pronounced everything correctly, as if it was his primary language.

Amelia stared at him with her jaw dropped. She wouldn't have believed it if she hadn't heard it herself. Honestly, who would believe that a skeleton knew Latin, let alone be alive?

He laughed and grinned, "It a wonder what you learn when you've been undead for centuries."

"You're lying," She stated in disbelief yet at the same time confused, "right?"

"Afraid not," He stated, "Heh, miraculous isn't it?"

She nodded her head dumbfounded, "But how can that be? I thought when things died, they were dead for good." She scratched her head.

"Well," he put his finger to his chin in thought, "It's said that if someone's soul still has a job to do, then they'll be sent to wherever they are needed. I ended up here and lo and behold, I became the Pumpkin King."

"Oh," she began to understand to some extent.

"How else could a skeleton be standing here and talking to you?" he chuckled.

She smiled at his humor, letting out a small giggle.

"Well, time to focus. Now pay attention." He held the book out again so that she could read along as he repeated the spell. This time, he said the words slower so she could catch on quicker. Once that was said and done, he gave her the book and told her to do the same.

"Purr me us vox voco vox of obscure um. Eef-ing-go is library pro mi hi quad emerge veer-grand is." She repeated, very unsure of her words then a bright ball of light appeared in front of her. She and Jack where in awe as it started to move, as if taking another form, that is until it literally blew up in their faces. They blinked as they realized their faces were covered in a black powdery substance from the explosion.

"Well that didn't go _exactly_ as I had planned it." He stated with a little sarcasm.

They looked at each other and started laughing. "I'm sorry Jack." She apologized, still giggling somewhat.

"It's quite alright." He too hadn't quite recovered from the laughter either, "I didn't really expect you to get it right on the first try, and it's rare that anyone does." He said lightheartedly, smiling. The laughter had finally died down.

After they had wiped the black powder off from their faces, they gave it another try. He once again slowly repeated the spell and she then held out the book in concentration.

"_Per_ _meus vox, voco vox of obscurum. Effingo is libri pro mihi quod emerge vegrandis_!" she called out.

Like before, the ball of light appeared and began to take form of something small and square. However, this time it did not explode. Instead, it changed into a smaller copy of the spell book. She set the original down and grasped the levitating book before her. When she held it, the book opened on its own as a white beam of light shot out of it. The energy even created its own wind gust so powerful that Amelia had to squint her eyes from the force as well as from the bright beam. Jack held his arm across his face to block the immense light. Almost as quickly as it came, the light died down and the book slammed shut in her hands. There was a quiet click of a lock.

"What was that?" she turned to him.

"Hmm…" he thought for a moment before speaking again, "My guess would be that the book was identifying you as its owner."

"This book as a mind of its own!?" she stared wide eyed at the object in her hands.

"In a matter of speaking, yes." He replied.

"Is this thing going to attack me?" she inquired, a little scared of the small brown book.

"No," he said as he gave a chuckle, "You forget that it's a magical book, therefore it will probably do things out of the ordinary." He explained.

She inspected the cover and found it different than the original, "Why does this copy look different?" she held it out so Jack could see for himself.

He looked at the book and back to the original, "Hmm…that is a question in which I do not know the answer."

The original was brown and aged with no details on it what so ever. By contrast, the smaller book looked new with a leather cover and an emerald jewel in the center surrounded by a crystal circle. Brass hinges on the spine held the book together and a matching brass lock where the book opened. "Where's the key?" she asked as she noticed the lock. All of a sudden, a similar ball of white light materialized once again which morphed into a key made of the same metal as that of the lock and hinges. She took the floating key and inserted into the lock, turning it until a click was heard. She opened the book and the first page was blank. She turned it and on the next page was a large circle with an ornate design around it. She gasped for then the book seemed to be writing itself when suddenly glowing letters began to appear in the circle. Jack watched over her shoulder as the letters were spelled out. The light died away and her name was left in black ink.

"Quite a special book you have there I'd say." He said in awe to the girl who simply nodded her head, dumfounded.

"Do you feel up to learn another spell?" he asked.

"Yeah!" she turned to him excitedly, practically bouncing up and down.

He was taken aback at her sudden enthusiasm, but was all the more pleased. "Alright then!" he kneeled down beside to her. "Now tell me Ami, what is the most basic spell a sorceress should know?"

She stopped her hopping to ponder the question. After a moment or so, she looked to Jack absolutely stumped. A shrug of her shoulders told him her answer.

He chuckled, "The one spell that every sorcerer knows is," he outstretched his hand towards his desk and spoke barely above a whisper, "_Levitazione_." A book lifted off of his desk and it moved in coordination with his hand. "The most basic spell is levitation!"

Her eyes widened in fascination as the book floated around and across the room until he finally brought it to rest back on his desk. She then looked to Jack, "That was so cool!"

He chuckled again at her enthusiasm, "It a rather simple spell." He said turning the pages of the book to find the spell. "You only need to learn one word, _levitazione_." He spoke slower as he recited the incantation once he had found the right page.

Amelia listened carefully and read over the word a few times before giving it a try. She held her spell book in one hand, "_Levitazione_." She pointed her hand to the same book Jack had used. Nothing happened. "Didn't I say it right?"

"It's not always about saying the spell correctly," he pointed out, "it's also has a lot to do with focus and concentration. Now, you must think solely about that book and picture in your mind what you want to happen."

She looked at the book and, following his instructions, tried again. "_Levitazione_." The book she pointed to slowly began to rise above the desk.

"Marvelous!" he applauded her, "Now, keep your focus and move your arm in the direction you want the book to go. Remember to see it in your mind."

Once again, she did as she was told and the book slowly floated around the room. She found it getting hard to keep focus until finally it dropped onto the ground with a thud. "It's a lot harder than it looks."

"You're just not used to it, that's all." He laughs. "Go ahead and try again."

As before, she concentrated, "_Levitazione_." The book once again was in the air.

Jack watched her and could see why she wasn't doing so well. "Ami, relax." He spoke calmly, "You're making it too hard on yourself."

She set the book down, took a deep breath and relaxed like he had said. She tried again, this time it came much easier and she was able to move it around almost effortless.

"Splendid!" he exclaimed. However, his happiness died down to slight worry as he noticed she looked quite exhausted, "Why don't we take a break?"

She looked to him, her eyes showing much gratitude. She then plopped herself on the floor. He laughed at her comical look. After a moment or so he spoke again, "How 'bout we take a walk? Give you a chance to breathe some fresh air."

She nodded in compliance and followed him after she got up from her spot on the tile floor.

They walked outside, much to Amelia's delight, and began down a path that led into the forest. "If you don't mind," Jack started up the conversation, "I'd like to try and figure out the source of your fears."

It was apparent that that specific subject wasn't something she wanted to talk about. However, she felt indebted to him so she agreed.

"Tell me, what scares you the most." He questioned.

She had to think about that for a moment, "Well…a bunch of things scare me a lot actually. But my two biggest fears are spiders," she cringed at the thought before continuing, "and the neighbor boy and his friends."

"Oh?" he was curious about that bit of information, "Go on."

"They're big meanie faces!" she scowled and crossed her arms, glaring at the ground as if it was its fault.

He had to stifle a laugh for her childish anger was very amusing to him, "How exactly are they mean to you?"

"They locked me inside a scary house!" she shouted, more to nobody in particular than to Jack.

This he did not find funny at all, "That's terrible! Why would they do that to you?"

"I was bothering them. Apparently I was keeping them from going and pulling pranks on everybody." She glared at the ground again. Her glare then softened to that of sadness, "They locked me in that scary place, full of webs and spiders." A tear slid down her cheek.

Jack stopped as did she and he kneeled down to be eyelevel with her, "Don't cry little Amelia," he wiped away the tear, "I'll help you get back at them if you want."

"Really?" she asked, a little hope shinning in her eyes.

He gave a curt nod as his answer, "No one should lock a little girl inside a spooky house."

She looked to the ground, "I don't want to be little anymore. I want to be a big kid like them and not be scared of anything."

He placed his hand on her shoulder and she looked up to him, "Fear is a sign of a strong heart, Amelia. Don't forget that." He reassured her.

She smiled, "Thank you."

"Well, I do intend to keep my end of the bargain. Though I cannot teach you to be fearless, I can help you to conquer your fears." He informed her.

She smiled again up at him, "As long as I can't be scared so easily anymore." She laughed.

"You know Ami, I believe you are already learning how to conquer your fears on your own!" he exclaimed.

She cocked her head in confusion.

"For example, I am the Pumpkin King!" he declared as he stood, "If you can befriend me, let alone stand up to me, you are well on your way."

"What is the Pumpkin King exactly?" she asked, not understanding.

"Eh," he hesitated to tell her but he decided that it would be best if he did, "being the Pumpkin King means that I am the most fearsome of all creatures!" he said with enthusiasm. "I'm a master of fright, and a demon of light! Why I'm even known throughout England and France!" he rolled his 'r' on France making an accent.

Unnoticed by the proclaiming king, Amelia had taken a few steps back. 'I shouldn't be so scared,' she thought when she realized she was backing away, 'as he said, he's the most fearsome yet, he's my friend.' She remembered him being so kind to her when she had a nightmare, giving her the bear, and even singing a lullaby to help her back to sleep. 'But why do I still feel scared?' She tried to have faith in herself as Jack had in her.

Three trick-or-treaters made their way to a rather large clearing in the woods, except for a few trees, and there was an old, worn down clubhouse built onto an old, warped tree in the center of a large hole in the ground. The only way to the island in the hole was an old, tattered bridge that had a few planks missing. Suspended above a hole in the bridge was what looked like a birdcage attached to a pulley system. The three stepped inside the cage and began to lower themselves down into the hole. When they had reached their destination, they made their way down many staircases before reaching a giant metal door. The boy in the devil costume knocked on the door.

"Who is it!?" a loud, booming, and annoyed voice shouted angrily from behind the door.

Immediately, the three huddled together for safety. "It's us," the boy in the skeleton costume answered. "Lock," said the devil. "Shock," said the witch. "And Barrel" said the skeleton.

"Ah, my three trick-or-treaters." The voice behind the door seemed to calm down, "Well, come in already!" it demanded.

Not wanting to displease him, they hurried inside. A large, green, burlap sack-like monster stood in the center of the room, which looked much like a torture casino with black lights to make everything neon colored. "Well? Do you have anything good to tell me?" he asked impatiently.

"There's a newcomer in town," reported Lock, taking off his devil's mask to reveal there was not much difference between his face and the mask.

"She's a little sorceress," stated Shock who also took off her green mask and, like Lock, there wasn't much of a difference.

"And she's befriended Jack." declared Barrel who did the same as the others, his face looking much like his pale mask as well.

"A sorceress eh?" the monster pondered, "Just what does she do?"

"Oh! She can hypnotize people." Lock said excitedly.

"_Really_?" the large, burlap sack monster seemed pleased.

"Yeah, she sings a song," stated Shock.

"And they instantly become zombies!" completed Barrel.

The monster let out a cackle, "This is too perfect! I already have a plan to use her to my advantage!"

The three trick-or-treaters cheered and let out sinister laughter as well.

"SILENCE!" the monster roared. Immediately, the three stopped and cowered before him. "Now she's befriended Jack you say?"

"Yes Mr. Oogie sir." Lock confirmed.

"Hmm…" this apparently put an obstacle in the way of his plan.

"Mr. Oogie? I think we should wait to capture her. Her powers are really weak and if we caught her now, we wouldn't be able to do much." Shock pointed out, a little wary of what he might say as well as his temper.

"Hmm, you have a point." The monster, addressed as Oogie, stated. "Keep a close eye on…what was her name?"

"Amelia." Barrel answered.

"Right, watch her and her progress. If anything of importance happens, tell me." Oogie commanded.

"Yes Mr. Oogie." They stated in unison and made their leave with their orders.

"I'll be King of Halloween Town yet. 'Cause I'm the Oogie Boogie Man!" he let out another maniacal cackle that seemed to echo throughout the surrounding forest before finally fading away.

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**If you want to hear Jack singing _Hushabye Moutain_ then go to youtube and type in: _Hushabye Nightmare._ ****Or you can just click the link in my profile. **

**  
Hope you enjoy it!! Fyi, the video was not done by me but it did inspire me to put it into my story. **


	4. Oggie and the Trick or Treating Trio

**Thanks to all those who reviewed! You gave me inspiration for future spells Amelia will learn so be sure to keep reading! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Nightmare Before Christmas and like I ever will. **

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Jack let out a cackle, "It seems I've gotten too carried away," he had caught himself rambling on and on about being the Pumpkin King. "Enough about that." he said and turned toward Amelia, "Back to the matter at hand, which would be figuring out your fears." He leaned forward and looked her in the eyes as if they would reveal the answer to their problem. "Tell me Ami," he stood back up, "When you witness something scary, what do you see?"

"Um…" she was puzzled by the odd question. "What do you mean?"

"I mean…" he stopped as a thought occurred to him, "How 'bout this, now think carefully. When you first saw me, what image went through your mind?"

Being only nine years old, she still had some difficulty with his strange request. However, she closed her eyes and tried to recall what she experienced only the day before. "I saw…" she finally spoke after a moment looking at the ground beneath her, "I saw a monster with an evil look in its eyes. Like it was going to attack me, or at least scare me to death."

Jack paced a little in thought before coming up with a solution. "Of course! I don't know why I didn't notice before. All human children have an overactive imagination when it comes to things that scare them." He was obviously proud of his conclusion.

"So," Amelia scratched her head, "What does that mean?" the poor girl was still confused as ever.

"It means that all you have to do now is just turn something scary into something not frightening at all!" he exclaimed, "Because you're so used to being scared and not knowing how to turn a bad situation into something good, you see things much more terrifying than they really are."

"So, I was only imagining things being really scary?" she was beginning to make sense of his words.

"Precisely!" he snapped his fingers when he spoke.

"And all I have to do is just tell myself that it's not scary at all and see it as something good?" she smiled as she fully understood him.

"By God you've got it!" he cackled happily. He took her by the hand and spun her around. She too joined in with his happy laughter. However, he ceased their little celebration after a short while and regained a, somewhat, serious tone. "Now, we've got to put our theory to the test."

It felt as if her heart sank as he spoke those words and her pupils shrunk into their familiar microscopic dots. She stood, frozen and anxious.

"Hmm…" he scratched his skull as he pondered over something. "Well, you're obviously not afraid of me anymore so anything I do just simply, well, won't do." He started to pace slowly again in thought. "There are the witches, they might work. Or even the Mayor, you were afraid of him…"

"Jack?" she interrupted his train of thought.

"Hmm? Yes Ami?" he had turned toward the little girl.

"Can we…well, try it out another day? Please?" she looked up to him with pleading eyes.

"Eh…" he couldn't resist, "I suppose I am rushing things, maybe a little too much." He smiled at her, "Sure, we can try it out another day." Seeing her obvious relief, he spoke again, "But don't expect me to put it off for too long, alright?" he held up his pointer finger like a teacher instructing his student.

Fear became present in her demeanor once again, though not to such an extent as before. With an inward sigh, knowing that this was a battle she wouldn't win, she said, "Ok."

He smiled yet again and then looked at the position of the sun, using his hand to shield his would-be eyes. "It looks like it's about time to head back. Come along Ami." He turned on his heel and started down the path that lead back to town.

Amelia obediently followed, tailing behind him. Jack could help but feel a little pity for her, knowing that it must be hard having to cope with so many fears all in one place. However, he knew that he shouldn't go easy on her or else she would never be able to overcome her terror.

Lock, Shock, and Barrel where hiding at the very edge of the woods near the road leading into town. Lock was in a tree branch while Barrel was hiding in a bush and Shock was behind the ruins of an old stone wall.

"Do you see anything Lock?" the girl dressed as a purple witch attempted to whisper loudly so that the devil costumed boy could hear her.

"No." he replied, whispering at the same volume as well.

"I'm getting tired of this waiting game." The boy in the skeleton costume complained.

"Too bad!" Shock snapped at him in her harsh whisper.

"Wait." Lock peered into the distance, "They're coming!" he told his comrades using the same tone as before.

They all ducked and hid to make sure they were out of sight from the people walking down the road and into town.

"Well we've already gotten levitation out of the way…" a masculine voice spoke.

All three of the trick-or-treaters recognized the voice to be Jack's. Each of them became worried as well as annoyed.

"Hmm…I think we ought to try shadow manipulation next."

"Shadow manipulation? Wha—" she was interrupted when three children, one about her age, just appeared out of nowhere, it seemed. Jack and Amelia both where a little surprised at the trick-or-treaters' sudden appearance.

"So you must be the new sorceress that everyone's been talking about!" Lock took off his mask before approaching her, Shock and Barrel followed his example.

"What's your name?" Shock questioned with curiosity obviously present in her voice.

"Where do you come from?" Barrel asked, also eager like the purple witch next to him.

"And what can you do?" Lock inquired.

"I…uh—" she was cut off when Jack stepped in front of her to block the three miscreants before them.

"Her name is Amelia, she came here from far away, and that is rather a rude question to ask when just meeting her, don't you think?" it was obvious he was wary of these three, but he didn't want to be too impolite.

"Aw Jack, you're no fun." Lock stated.

"But I guess we shouldn't be so bad-mannered," Shock elbowed the devil boy in the side, "we should introduce ourselves."

"Lock." said the devil.

"Shock." said the witch.

"And Barrel." said the skeleton.

"Halloween Town's finest trick-or-treaters!" they chorused in unison.

"Hi," the little sorceress greeted, peering from behind Jack. She was a little shy but was smiling for she was happy that there were kids here around her own age.

"Sorry but we must cut this meeting short, Amelia and I have somewhere to be." And with that, Jack grasped her hand and began to pull her away from the trio. Unbeknownst to him, she turned to look at them, smiled, and waved goodbye.

Once they were out of earshot, Shock clobbered Lock in the shoulder, "You dummy! I told you we should've waited until she was alone!"

"Why are you blaming me?" Lock objected.

"Because it was your idea stupid!" She pointed out.

The two stopped their bickering as they heard their third member laughing at them. They glared at him but he didn't stop.

"I wish my cohorts weren't so dumb." She sighed.

"I'm not the dumb one!" Barrel protested.

"You're no fun." Lock said to him.

"Shut up!" She ordered them.

"Make me!" the devil snapped.

"I've got something, listen now! This plan is real good, you'll see!" she got their attention and motioned them to form a huddle. In hushed tones, she told them her idea.

"Yeah, that'll work!" the devil said enthusiastically.

"I can't wait!" Barrel stated with equal excitement.

All three let out their sinister cackles and ran into town.

"Jack?" Amelia asked once they were inside his home and in the tower. "Why were you in such a rush to get away from those three?"

"That trio is one not to be trusted, Ami." He turned to face her, "Those three are conniving, lying, and scheming little brats!"

She was slightly taken aback at this, she had never seen Jack so worked up or so upset. 'Just what did those three kids do that was so bad?' she questioned herself in thought.

"Forgive me," he composed himself, "I didn't mean to act out like that. It's just that they are always up to no good. Though they normally just pull pranks on everyone, but they do tend to get a little carried away at times. I didn't know if they were trying to pull something then or not." He looked slightly ashamed of his behavior.

"It's all right Jack." she tried to console him. "You were just looking out for me." She smiled at him.

"Yes well," he gave a small smile back, "it is true what I said. You mustn't trust them at all. They could very well trick you into doing something you may regret. Understand?" he asked, hopeful that she would comprehend.

She beamed again and gave a curt nod. She noticed his odd behavior returning, as if he was unsure to tell her something. Her guess was confirmed.

"Ami, what do you know about the Boogie Man?" he asked, very hesitant if he should have brought it up.

Like any young child, the name struck fear into her heart and her pupils became small, as they so often did. She fisted her hand and it was on her mouth, showing her terror. In spite of her fear, she spoke. "John, Cody, and Trevor always scare me with stories about him."

"Are those the boys who locked you inside the haunted house?" he asked.

She gave a quick nod, "Yeah. They always said that if I didn't leave a light on in my room, the Boogie Man would eat me." She quivered in fear, "And that I should stay awake at night or else he'd eat me when I sleep."

Jack couldn't help but laugh at the unbelievable stories. Seeing the hurt expression in her eyes, he explained, "Sorry, but those are all absurd."

"So you mean that the Boogie Man isn't real?" she asked with a hopeful expression.

He frowned, "Eh, no. He's real alright." As he had expected, her fear returned. "But he cannot get into the human world, I assure you." He smiled in hope that she wouldn't be so frightened.

Her hand fell to her side, much to his relief, but her eyes were still shifty.

"Ami, why don't you sit down? I'll tell you what you need to know about him." He gestured to his chair at his desk once he had pulled it out so she could take a seat.

She did as she was told and sat. Jack then grabbed another chair and sat in front of her before he began, "For one, here we know him as Oogie Boogie. Like me, he is a leader of a holiday, well he _was_. Oogie was in charge of Bug Day, but as I'm sure you know, it no longer exists. The one place he could possibly call home was Halloween Town. However, because he was still angry at the fact his holiday was forgotten, he tried to become the King of Halloween. The citizens did not agree with him but they were too scared to stand up to him. So, for a short while, Oogie was in charge. I then came to town and the people told me what had happened to their town of Halloween. I told them that I would set things straight. Seeing as how he was a fearsome creature, they didn't want me to risk my undead life and tried to prevent me from going. I told them that I wasn't afraid of Oogie and marched straight up to his lair. I opened these large gates that lead to a vast, dark room. Oogie was sitting upon a throne straight across from me. He laughed as soon as he saw me for thought I wasn't even a threat. I commanded him to give Halloween back to the townspeople. This greatly angered him. He then lashed out at me and his army of bugs to rid of me. But I took out his army of bugs with ease. It was obvious Oogie was beginning to fear me. He tried to destroy me one last time but I easily got by him and defeated him. This is where I made my mistake. I couldn't help but feel sort of sorry for him so I didn't demolish him. Instead, I banished him to the outskirts of town and he was never to set foot inside Halloween Town again. Once he was gone, the Mayor approached me and thanked me several times on behalf of Halloween. And as a reward for my bravery, he crowned me as The Pumpkin King. From that point on, it was my job to run Halloween and make it much scarier than the last. However, I did not expect that Oogie had henchmen, Lock, Shock, and Barrel. Ever since, they have done his dirty work and they have repeatedly tried to catch me off guard so Oogie could take hold of Halloween."

He took a deep breath, not that he had said the whole thing really fast. "That is why I don't want the trick-or-treaters near you or who knows what could happen."

Amelia gave a curt nod. She had been hanging on Jack's every word, intrigued and fascinated by his story. "So that's how you became The Pumpkin King?" she was still in awe.

"Yes that right." He crossed his arms and has a sense of pride. "Oogie Boogie wasn't a match for me then or now. So you don't have to worry about him bothering you at home." A thought occurred to him, "And you can tell those boys that you're not afraid of him anymore."

She beamed at the king, "Thank you." She let out a small laugh.

He cocked a would-be eyebrow, thinking that he hadn't said anything that was particularly humorous.

"It's just kinda funny that if it weren't for John, Cody, and Trevor, I probably wouldn't have ended up here."

"Oh?" now it was Jack's turn to be intrigued by her story. She told him about the boys locking her inside the house and how she managed to escape as well as choosing the forest over them, which he had found amusing. She described how creepy the forest had looked which was why she ran and ended up in a circle of trees. She then finishes by explaining what had happened when she opened the door and was sucked in by a black wind.

"Yes, very ironic indeed." He stated with a smile on his face. "So tell me Ami, how does your world celebrate Halloween?"

She was a little surprised at the sudden question but was happy to answer. "Well, kids like me and younger dress up in costumes. It's always so much fun to dress up as something different every year, and we can be whoever we want to!" she grinned and got up from her seat, "And at nighttime all the kids in costumes go door to door and say 'Trick or Treat.'" She pretended to be at someone's door with a basket, "The people inside the house will give us candy! Though some of them only give out healthy foods so we have to be careful about which house we go to." She stood tall as if she was instructing Jack, which he found quite comical. "Once we got back home with all of our friends, we see who has the most candy and we'll trade candy we don't like for things that we do. Oh! I forgot something, the best houses to go to are the ones with a lot of Halloween decorations. Most of them have jack-o-lanterns, fake spider webs, and the people giving out the candy will be outside in a costume with a really big bowl full of sweets!" it was obvious that this was one of her favorite holidays. "For the older kids, some people make haunted houses or mazes where some people will hide in really creepy costumes and jump out and scare the kids that walk by." She jumped with her arms above her head as if she was scaring someone. Lowering her arms she laughed before continuing, "There's also parties where everyone is dressed up and they have a contest for the best costume. There are a lot of things that we do for Halloween." She smiled at him.

"Well you've definitely inspired me with some great ideas for next year's Halloween!" he said with optimism as he stood up from the chair.

She beamed at him with pride, "Glad I could help."

He couldn't help but ruffle her hair, much to her dislike. She crossed her arms and scowled a little. Jack laughed at her behavior which earned him a glare from the nine-year-old. "Well how 'bout we start on that shadow manipulation spell?" he asked with a smile.

Her temper was replaced with excitement and she started bouncing up and down, eagerly nodding her head yes.

Jack chuckled again, "Alright then, get your spell book out and turn to the section called _Shadows_."

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**Sorry if this chapter was a little shorter than the others. **

**I really enjoyed writing this chapter because Lock, Shock, and Barrel are just so much fun to write about! Lol! **

**Please review!**


	5. Itsy Bitsy Spider

**Hey everyone! So sorry for the long wait so I plan to try and update faster with these chapters. Though they may end up being a little shorter so I appologize ahead of time that this chapters is going to be shorter than the others. I still hope you enjoy it anyway! Thanks so much for the reviews!**

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"Yes, yes! You're getting it!" Jack said enthusiastically, cheering the small child beside him.

Amelia had her spell book in one hand and her other outstretched toward a shadow on the wall. It was a shadow of a lamp that was being twisted and deformed at her will. However, it was apparent she was struggling with this for she let out a held breath as her arm fell limp to her side. The shadow returned to its normal silhouette against the side of the room.

"And you lost it." The Pumpkin King sighed. "Well, you've definitely improved." He proclaimed with an encouraging smile to which she gave her own in return, albeit exhausted.

Amelia had practiced the shadow manipulation spell several times that day, but she still could only get so far before her control the dark figure on the wall slipped.

"There's got to be something we're missing." He commented and then gestured toward her book, "May I?"

She obediently handed him the book. He looked at the page marked _Shadow Manipulation_ and read over the passage many times. "Hmm…" he scratched his head in thought, "I just don't see what it is that's going wrong."

"Can I look at it again?" she asked. He gave her the book back and she too read the page over. "I think I know." she let out a laugh, "It's so obvious, I'm switching two of the words around!" she beamed up at him.

Jack just looked at her, dumbfounded. 'There's no way I could have missed that.' He thought to himself scratching his head once again in confusion. He looked over her shoulder and peered at the words. Sure enough, she was right.

Amelia grinned as she held out the book and reached out her hand toward the lamp's shadow again, "_Umbra trado ut meus vox._" she commanded.

The silhouette became distorted, bending and twisting in all sorts of ways, surrendering to the little girl's will. She began to laugh at the odd forms she was making with her imagination.

"This is marvelous!" Jack was ecstatic, "Only after a few days of being here and you mastered your vocal hypnotism and now you've learned shadow manipulation in just a few hours!" he placed his hand on her shoulder as she released her hold on the dark figure on the wall. "I do believe you are quite the prodigy!"

She beamed up at him, grateful for his praise, "Well you're a good teacher Jack!"

He gave a light-hearted laugh, "Well I've certainly had a lot of time to practice my own skills." He stated as if it gave him a sense of pride.

She simply rolled her eyes and shook her head, but her smile never faltered knowing that the skeleton king meant well.

"Why don't you go take a break?" he suggested, "I need to figure out what you should learn next anyway."

Amelia gave a curt nod before making her decent down the spiraling stairway. Zero came up beside her and gave a congratulatory bark.

"Thanks Zero. I can't believe I'm doing so well! I've never been so good at anything before!" she exclaimed happily as the ghostly dog smiled at her. "But you know what?"

The transparent canine cocked its head to the side, implying that he was asking "What?"

"I've been missing mom and dad a lot and my friends but…" she paused for a moment, "I don't want to leave. I feel like I'm somebody here." Her mouth curved into a sad smile, "Cody, Trevor, and John always picked on me for their own fun by calling me weird and all just because I like Halloween and dressing up in costumes! Can you believe that?"

Zero shook his head. She gave a sigh before continuing, "Well, I guess I really shouldn't remain here forever but do you think Jack would mind if I stayed here a while longer?"

He shook his head no again before giving her his signature happy ghost grin.

"Thank you Zero. You know, I think I can talk to you about anything." She beamed at the floating dog with a bright jack-o-lantern nose. They had reached the bottom of the staircase and began to head towards her room down the corridor.

Had they turned around, they might have noticed a certain eight-legged creature on the wall that had begun to follow them.

Amelia practically threw herself onto her bed and laid there for a moment dozing with Zero curled up on the pillow next to her. She was gazing at the ceiling of her recently cleaned up room. Her eyes began to travel to the dark grey wall next to her, then to the one in front of her. When she looked upon the one on her other side her, she gasped in fright as her eyes shrunk to their familiar microscopic dots. Her ghostly companion heard her gasp in terror and looked to the wall only to see the little girl pass right through him and cowered behind the bedside opposite of the wall.

"Sa-sa-sa" was all she had managed to stutter out before crying out in a loud shriek, "SPIDER!"

Just like only a couple of nights ago, Jack came rushing into the room at the sound of her yelp. "Amelia! What's wrong? Are you alright!?"

Shaking violently from her hiding spot she pointed to the wall where a small arachnid currently resided.

He mentally gave a sigh of relief. 'That's right she's only a little human girl. I had almost forgotten that she isn't a real citizen of Halloween Town or one of the undead.' He thought and chuckled mentally. The Pumpkin King then walked over to the spider, "Well, you needed to face this fear sooner or later."

"I think later sounds good." She managed to croak out, shaking in her hiding spot.

He placed his hand out to the tiny eight-legged creature to which it crawled into his palm. "Now, now, if you want to become a true sorceress you need to overcome this obstacle first." He said as he walked over to her.

She had guessed his plan so she had already moved to the nearest corner of the room, using her hands to hide her face from the so-called terrifying bug.

He sat down in front of her and held out his hand currently holding the spider, though he kept the tiny animal near himself not wanting to scare her more than she already was. "It's alright Ami. Tell me what it is that makes this little spider so frightening." He said gently.

She lowered her hands just enough so she could see for a moment and looked at the creature before she covered her eyes up again. She mumbled something incoherent so Jack asked her to speak a little louder. "I said that it'll capture me in its web and eat me." Her voice was still very meek.

He laughed, "That's preposterous Ami! How could such a small little spider eat you?"

"It will!" she shifted her body so she was almost facing one of the walls that made up her corner. "They're creepy and scary and their webs are really sticky and it'll trap me in its web while I sleep!" she started rambling as tears began to cascade down her cheeks.

"Trust me Amelia," he said in the most caring way, "this little spider won't harm you, nor will anything else here in Halloween Town because I'll always protect you."

Her crying stopped and she turned slightly as she removed her hands from her face to look at him, "Really?" she spoke barely above a whisper.

"I promise." He gave her a kind smile.

She slowly turned around to face him, obviously still very terrified of the small creature. "You sure it's not gonna eat me?" she asked, though this time she sounded as though she was beginning to believe Jack and trusted his word.

He laughed again, "I'm sure. In fact a mere spider web couldn't capture you or anyone in Halloween Town. The only thing it can trap, and eat, is just other bugs!" he paused a moment as soon as the words left his mouth. He suddenly stood up to his full height and briskly walked to her window, opened it and placed the spider outside. He then shut the window and drew the crimson curtains to a close.

Amelia stood up as she noticed his strange behavior, "Jack? What's wrong?" she began to show concern for the Pumpkin King.

He walked over to her and grasped her hand, "I'll explain later." His comforting tone was replaced with one of stern seriousness, something she hadn't really heard him use before but obediently let him lead her. Zero followed close behind, also confused by his master's odd actions.

They made their way outside and he walked to the gate leading out of town, opened it and started down the old dirt path. His pace was faster than hers so she stumbled a few times as she tried to keep up with his long strides.

"Jack?" she hesitantly asked, knowing that something really bothered him.

Not stopping or even turning to look at her, he answered, "Amelia my home is no longer safe enough for you to stay and neither is anywhere else in Halloween Town."

"What?" she was taken aback at the sudden news, as was the ghostly canine floating next to her.

"I'm sorry, but you must return to your home." He stated firmly as they approached the Holiday Doors.

"What!? No! I don't want to leave!" she begged and started to attempt to pry her hand out of his grasp with no avail.

They were in front of the Jack-o-Lantern door when Jack turned to face her still keeping his hold on her so she wouldn't run. He knelt down to be eyelevel with her, "As I said, I am truly sorry but you must go back." His voice had softened as his expression pleaded her to understand.

"But why?" she asked, "You said I'd be safe so why do I have to leave?"

He mentally smacked himself for saying such a thing earlier, "Listen, I never said you couldn't come back." He offered a sad smile, "You can return whenever you like, but I'm afraid you can no longer stay a whole day and we must be very precautious when you're here." He saw that she still didn't comprehend, "I have reason to believe you are in great danger. True you are safe when you're with me but now you can never be out of my sight. One mistake and something, well, awful could happen." His voice had become saddened and he placed his other hand on her shoulder, "I know you're confused but you need trust me on this, alright?"

She was at the point of tears once again but she told herself that if Jack believed it was necessary then she shouldn't fight back. She gave a nod as her answer.

He stood up and let go of her hand and shoulder, "I'm keeping my promise though, I'm showing you the way home and all you have to do in order to return is to simply go back the way you came when you first opened this door in your world." He gestured to the pumpkin shaped picture on the tree next to them.

She still felt as though a piece of her had been ripped out but she still believed in him. She looked up to the Pumpkin King standing before her. With her sad expression she held her arms out. Jack understood what she meant and hugged her.

"You said that it will still be the same time that I left home right?" she asked as she reluctantly released him from the embrace as did he.

"Yes that's right." He stood up and took out a small object from the inside of his coat. It was her spell book and he handed it to her, then he walked over to the door and placed his hand on the knob, "Ready?"

Amelia looked to the ghost dog who had glided up next to her, "Goodbye Zero, I'll come back soon ok?" she patted his head and the transparent canine gave her a smile that told her he was already missing her.

She turned back to her skeleton friend. She clutched the book so she would not drop it, "I'm ready."

Jack opened the door and she approached it, letting the black wind take her into the hollow tree. The door slammed shut.

"Curse that no good Jack Skellington!" an enraged Oogie Boogie yelled. "Are you sure she's gone!?" he asked the cowering trio of pranksters in front of him.

"Y-yes Mr. Oogie sir." Lock stuttered. The poor trick-or-treating team had the unfortunate job of telling their boss what had happened.

The burlap sack-like monster let out an aggravated roar and pushed down several of his giant cards that happened to be nearby.

"B-but she really didn't want to leave!" Barrel said.

"A-and Jack said that she could come back!" Shock pointed out.

"Didn't you also say that she was going to be around him at all times!?" Oogie bellowed at them, his shout nearly blowing them backwards from the strong wind gust it produced. "I should have known that spider trick you useless three came up with wouldn't get by him!"

"We're sorry Mr. Oogie!" the three chorused.

"Sorry doesn't get me the seven holidays! Let alone the Pumpkin throne!" he was fuming so much that the three could have sworn they saw the top of his head give off smoke.

"I-I think I-I have an idea." Shock stated.

"Wasn't that spider-on-the-wall thing your idea?" Barrel asked, doubting his cohort.

"So what?" she retorted and stepped a few paces forward, "This one is sure to work!"

Oogie grumbled and crossed his arms, "Well, I haven't got any better plans so let's hear it."

She grinned mischievously while her companions just looked at her in slight disbelief but decided to listen to what she had to say.

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**Oooh...what could her evil plan be??? The more people review, the faster I write! XD **


	6. Once Upon A Midnight Dreary

**Hello everyone! Thank you so much for the awesome reviews so here's your reward! Just some random information, I stayed up till almost 1 am editing this XD I was so determined to get this chapter posted. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Nightmare Before Christmas or any of its characters, nor do I ownany of the quotes from Edgar Allen Poe, Iownonly Amelia.**

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A deep sigh was heard within the tower of Jack's home. He sat at his desk hunched over, with elbow rested on the wooden top so his hand held his head up. A brown book of Edgar Allen Poe's complete worksnext to him was currently being ignored for his mind was far from anything remotely related to the famous author. It had only been a few days since she left and he was already missing little Amelia greatly. Zero had noticed his anguish so he tried his best to cheer up the sad Pumpkin King but nothing worked. Why he didn't even want to play fetch! So now Zero rested comfortably in his basket as he too had found that he missed the innocent child. 

The skeleton glanced at the book, "_Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary_," He quoted suddenly, for the line was eerily similar to his current situation, save for the fact that it was daytime. He then looked out the window, "I'm certain that spider was a spy for Oogie," the gloomy skeleton spoke, lifting his head up and placed his bony hand on the desk, "and I really should do _something_ about it but…" he trailed off and pondered for a moment before he completed his thought, "The last thing I want to do is give Oogie an idea for one of his many schemes." He returned back to his hunched over position and heaved another depressed sigh. He felt a tug at his leg and looked down to find his ghostly pet trying to get his attention. "You're right Zero," he gave a half smile, "maybe some fresh air would be good for me." He rose from his seat and descended down the spiraling stairwell with his loyal friend at his side. 

Once outside his subconscious seemed to guide his feet as his mind continued to wonder. He soon found himself in the Hinterlands standing in front of the all too familiar door in the shape of a Jack-o-Lantern. 'Maybe there's a way I could contact Amelia somehow…' he thought. As if his question was being answered, the door suddenly opened and something small flew out of it and landed on the ground right in front of his feet. The door then slammed shut. 

Curious, he picked up the strange object to find that it was an envelope. Not just any envelope, but a letter. His demeanor suddenly brightened and a smile spread across his face as he opened the letter, "It's from Amelia, Zero!" he told his companion who too had also cheered up quite a bit. 

Jack held the letter and read its contents aloud. 

_Dear Jack and Zero,_

_Just in case you were worried I'm fine and I've kept the holidays and the doors a secret. I know you didn't want to tell me before but why did I have to leave? I know you said I was in danger but what danger? I just want to know. If you can't tell me then okay, I understand. You'll be happy to know that the mean boys can't scare me with stories about the Boogie Man anymore! But when I tried to tell my mom and dad that they had locked me in that spooky house, they didn't believe me. I really want to get back at them but I'm just a little girl, what can I do? I hope to get back at them next year when they least expect it! You'll help me right? You said that you would. Thank you so much Jack. _

_Your friend,_

_Ami_

Jack smiled at her signature being the nickname he had given her. He then noticed that there was part of the letter he had missed so he read it out loud as well. 

_PS _

_I'm not sure when I can come back. I know it's not safe for someone like me to be wandering in the woods at night. Also I don't want my parents to accidentally catch me leaving or else the holidays could get into trouble, and me too. Even sending this letter was a difficult task. I will try to return as soon as I can and when I can, I'll tell you when in one of these letters. _

"Now that's unfortunate," he stated, "but I understand." A smile spread across his features, "Well, we mustn't keep her waiting for a response should we Zero?" Said dog barked in agreement as they began to walk back down the path home. 

Jack's pace had noticeably quickened and his depressed demeanor changed to that of joy on the way back into town. One he had reached his study, he sat at his desk and immediately began to write his reply. 

The next day, he journeyed back to the Hinterlands with his letter in hand. He opened the Jack-o-Lantern door and placed the envelope containing his reply inside to which the familiar black wind picked it up and sucked it down into the dark abyss within the hollow tree. 

On the other side, Amelia had managed to sneak away from her home to the forest which actually was right behind her own house. She had never realized that she lived so close to the haunted house, or now so near the Holiday Doors. She had arrived at her destination when the pumpkin-shaped door suddenly swung open and the very same wind that had brought her to Halloween Town dropped Jack's letter in front of her feet. She picked it up and quickly opened the envelope, eager to read it. 

_Dear Ami,_

_I am very glad to know that you are doing just fine and that those bullies have one less fear to pick on you with. I am sorry but I cannot tell you why I had you leave because I still feel that it isn't safe yet and I just don't want to see my good friend get hurt. It is too bad that those boys didn't get punished for their horrible actions and I will most certainly help you come Halloween next year. It saddens me that it will be difficult for you to return to Halloween Town but I do look forward to your eventual arrival. I really appreciate that you are being so loyal to the holidays, you will most definitely be on Santa's nice list, though you are probably already on it anyway. _

_Sincerely your friend,_

_Jack Skellington_

_PS_

_Clever idea on how to keep in touch. _

She beamed at his last statement and she started to skip happily on home. 'I'm still kinda sad that he won't tell me why I had to leave,' she thought to herself, 'but I'm glad he's looking out for me. Not to mention he's going to help me get back at John, Trevor, and Cody!' she grinned mischievously at the idea. 

For the next few weeks they kept up their letter system, with the occasional long wait for a reply on Amelia's behalf. Both of them were always ecstatic to receive a letter from the other. The weeks soon turned into a month and still Amelia could not find a way to escape to Halloween Town without being noticed. 

However, one night she decided to take a risk. Donning her sorceress costume she snuck out of her house and into the woods. Unlike last time, the path wasn't illuminated by the moon's eerie glow. There was no moon at all but she hoped that it would be all the more helpful for her to slip away inconspicuously to the land of ghosts and ghouls. She was a smart girl so she had with her a flashlight to see where she was going but she made sure to dim it enough so that it wouldn't be noticed by anyone in the houses behind her. As she got deeper into the woods she let the light shine to its fullest and she still had trouble finding the right way. Finally, she made it to the familiar circle of trees, each with a picture of a certain holiday on them. Without hesitation, she opened the Jack-o-Lantern door and let the wind sweep her away into the hollow tree. Just like before, she landed with the sound of crunched leaves beneath her and she could see the warped town in the distance with a dirt path nearby. Using the flashlight to reveal the road, she made her way into Halloween Town. 

She dimmed the light as she walked through the old iron gate and began to search for Jack's home. 'I hope he doesn't mind me dropping in so late at night.' She thought to herself, worried over that she should've had better judgment at arrival times. 'Maybe I'll just sleep in my room and then see him in the morning.' With that decision in mind, she opened the front gate to his property and quietly ran up the stairs. She grasped the door knob and twisted it. Unfortunately, the door did not open when she pulled at it. 'Duh Amelia! Doors are supposed to be locked at night!' she mentally scolded herself. 

She ran back down the steps and to the side of the house to see a familiar looking balcony, the balcony to her room. She closed her eyes, breathed deeply and held her arms out wide as if to embrace something, "_Levitazione._" She whispered. Eyes still closed, she slowly began to rise into the air. She concentrated but remembered to relax and opened her eyes. She was just outside her window and concentrating even harder, she lifted herself over the railing and landed with a soft thump onto the wooden floorboards. She let out a deep sigh in relief as her arms fell to her sides. "I did it!" she softly spoke, proud of her accomplishment. She reached out and pulled on the handle to the sliding glass door only to discover that it was locked too. "What!?" she said in a harsh but soft tone, not wanting to wake any neighbors. "Ugh!" She rested her back against the glass and slid down until she was seated on the ground, her arms supported by her knees. "What do I do now?" she then heard a tapping sound on the window behind her. She turned to see who, or what, it was. "Zero!" she exclaimed happily at the sight of her ghostly friend. 

Zero smiled at her and tried to get her to come inside. 

Amelia's joyous expression turned solemn and she stood up, "The door's locked." 

The dog's eyes widened in slight surprise but he floated over to the handle. Using his jack-o-lantern nose, he turned the lock until a soft _click_ was heard. He smiled happily again at the little girl on the other side of the door and nodded his head. 

She grasped the handle again and quietly slid the door open, her bright expression returned to her once sad face. She stepped inside and Zero barked happily, but she immediately shushed him, "I don't want to wake Jack." 

"Too late," a masculine voice spoke. 

Amelia whipped around to see none other than Jack, in his tan nightgown and cap, sitting on the edge of her bed with his arms crossed. 

"Although it wasn't your fault." He eyed Zero, who smiled sheepishly. The Pumpkin King just grinned, "Zero thought he heard something so he got me up to investigate." He stated as he got up and turned the lights on. "Lo and behold I find a little sorceress sneaking around." He looked to be in thought for a moment before speaking again, "You know, this reminds me of a stanza from a poem I read earlier today,

_Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, _

_Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore, _

_While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, _

_As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door. _

"'_Tis some visitor," I muttered, "tapping at my chamber door- _

_Only this, and nothing more._

Ah, you've got to love the writings of Edgar Allen Poe," he stated after completing the quote.

She gave a small laugh and ran over to him. She wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace. 

"It's so good to see you again Ami," he smiled warmly while he returned the gesture. He soon released the small child and glanced at the grandfather clock in the corner of the room, "Well it is still far too early to be doing much of anything, so if you don't mind," he yawned, "I'm going to return to bed and we can catch up in the morning." He gave her a tired smile as she in turn also gave a yawn and nodded her head. "Well then, goodnight little Ami." He turned on his heel and exited her room to return to his own. She was about to turn in when he appeared in the doorway, "I almost forgot!" he walked up to her and seemed to be holding something behind his back. "You left this behind," he then held out the teddy bear he had given her a while back. 

She beamed happily and cuddled the bear, "Thank you Jack." 

"Not a problem at all," he turned once again and headed out the door, "Goodnight Ami."

"Goodnight." She said and walked to her bed. She pulled at the sheets and clambered up into her bed, not really caring that she was still in her Halloween costume. She hugged her bear close to her and like before, Zero curled up next to her head on the pillow beside her. She bid the ghost dog goodnight as well before she drifted off into a peaceful sleep. 

The next morning, Amelia sat at the edge of her bed, staring out the very window she had been let in last night. It had quite the view actually, it overlooked the town and in the distance was the forest where the Holiday Doors where hidden. Out of curiosity, she slid the door open and stepped out onto the wooden balcony. She leaned against the railing, lost in thought. She was pondering a question she knew that Jack would be very hesitant to answer, but she wanted to know! Could it be helped that she was a nine-year-old with a curiosity that she simply could not oppress? Her ever loyal companion came out onto the balcony as well and floated next to her, enjoying the view. 

"Zero, can I ask you something?" the young girl addressed the ghostly canine. 

Said dog with a jack-o-lantern nose turned toward the small child and awaited her question. 

"Do you think it would be alright if I tried to ask Jack again what he's so worried about?" she inquired. 

Her friend thought for a moment and gave, what she interpreted as, a ghostly shrug. 

"He seems almost _fearful_ of whatever it is." She laughed a little at the thought, "Can you imagine, The Pumpkin King, most fearful of all creatures," she imitated Jack's voice and personality momentarily before returning back to her own voice, "actually scared of something?" 

With his trademark smile, the ghost dog shook his head. 

"Well, I think I'll go ahead and ask," She smiled at him, "about why he's so worried for whatever reason that is." She then walked back inside her room with Zero tailing behind her and made her way down the hall, up the spiraling staircase, and into Jack's study. 

There he sat in his chair at his desk as he read a brown book with gold cursive letters on the cover that said _Entire Tales & Poems of Edgar Allen Poe_. Upon having heard her enter, he looked up from his book and smiled at the little girl dressed as a sorceress. However, his expression turned from happiness to that of slightly puzzled for she looked to be having an inner debate of some sort. "Good morning Amelia, is something the matter?" he asked as he set the book down on his desk. 

She walked a few paces closer to him for she seemed to have decided on whatever it was she had pondered over. "Jack, I know you hate me asking but what is it that's got you so worried over me?" 

Just like she had expected, he stiffened and became very hesitant, "I…uh…" he heaved a sigh, "I'm sorry but I still cannot answer that." 

"But why!?" she felt hurt that he still wouldn't tell her, "Do you not trust me or something?" 

"No, that's not it!" he got up from his chair, walked a few step and kneeled to be eye level with her, "Of course I trust you." 

"If you do then why do you keep it a secret." She fought back the tears that tried to well up. 

He felt defeated and put a consoling hand upon her shoulder, "Listen, I have a bad feeling that something terrible is going to happen," he spoke in a hushed tone, "and I'm worried that it will happen to you. Or at least it will involve you in some way." 

She knew that he still wasn't telling her everything but it was still more that she had gotten out of him than before. "You shouldn't worry so much about me." She smiled and gave a soft laugh. "Besides, I'll be fine and you really need to calm down. Stress is never good for anyone you know." She jokingly acted like she was an adult who was giving a child a life lesson. 

Jack chuckled, "Alright, I'll relax." He stood up and beamed at her to which she smiled back. However, the Pumpkin King still had an eerie feeling that there was something dangerous about to approach and if he wasn't careful, he wouldn't be able to stop it. 

Little did he know that indeed there was trouble close at hand that was being caused by none other than the Boogie Man.

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**Dun dun dun...**

**Well I hope you all liked the Edgar Allen Poe quotes I put in there, lol! I know a lot of you were wanting Amelia to come back. Reviews make me write faster!! XD**


	7. The Oogie Boogie Man

**Hi everyone! Thanks so much for the awesome reviews and here's your reward! Fyi, it's a little long cause I stuck a song in here.**

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"So she's back eh

"So she's back eh?" Oogie Boogie smirked as he crossed his arms once he received the news of Amelia's return from his trick-or-treating henchmen.

"So when are we gonna start the plan?" Barrel asked and licked his black and orange lollipop.

"Yeah?" Lock and Shock asked excitedly.

"Hmm," Oogie held his chin in thought, "I believe that it isn't time to put our scheme into action yet."

"Huh?" The trio said, shocked to hear such a thing from their boss.

"She just doesn't have the magic needed to make it work yet." The burlap sack-like monster explained.

"Well, how long do we have to wait then?" Lock asked, shrugging his shoulders.

"I know!" the ex-bug king seemed to be hit with an idea, "Why don't we strike during next year's Halloween?" he laughed, "It's too perfect! Jack will be so busy with the preparations that he won't even notice what we've got planned until it's too late!" he let out an evil cackle.

The trio looked at each other and exchanged mischievous glances before letting out their own hysterical laughter.

"SILENCE!" Oogie roared which, of course, had its desired effect.

Eleven months passed and during that time, Jack and Amelia kept in touch through their letter system. Amelia had managed to come to Halloween Town many times, though she could no longer spend whole days there. One trip, Jack even took her to see Santa Claus. But at least in the small amount of time she could spend there, she practiced her magic and mastered her abilities. There were even a few spells that all she had to do was think them and they would happen instead of having to say them. Jack was extremely proud of how far she had come. Although her progress was impressive, she still had a long way to go before becoming a full fledged sorceress.

They were in the town square where everyone was setting up for the upcoming Halloween celebration. This would be the first Halloween that Amelia wouldn't be scared of everything in sight.

Jack had with him an incredibly long list and was marking off things as he saw them. "Old tree with the hanging skeletons, check. Boiling cauldron, check. Overall decorations," he scanned the town with his eyes and then returned to his list, "check." He had reached the end of his list and began to roll it back up, "Well Ami," he turned to the girl beside him, who had only grown an inch or so in the past several months, "I do believe that is the last item. I'm sure that this year's Halloween will most certainly be better than the last!" He smiled at her who beamed back up at him.

Jack noticed a familiar short, stout man with a tall, skinny top hat approaching him, "Hello Mayor!" the skeleton greeted.

"Jack, I hope to see that everything is in order?" the mayor asked.

"Yes, in fact, I just finished checking everything off the list." The king proclaimed happily. "With Ami's help of course." He gestured to the child next to him who smiled and greeted the mayor.

"Glad to hear it. This Halloween will most definitely be a terrible one." Mayor said gleefully.

"A most horrible one indeed!" Amelia piped in. She had finally grown accustomed to the strange terminology the citizens used.

"Well Mayor, let me know if there's any trouble and I'll take care of it," Jack stated, turned on his heel and began to walk away as his small companion tailed behind him.

"Will do Jack!" the mayor called and he walked away as well in the opposite direction.

Amelia was so ecstatic about the upcoming festivities that she skipped along side The Pumpkin King as she laughed softly to herself.

"Well I certainly must say that you've come a long way from last year when you probably would have run at the sight of all this." He stated when he noticed how thrilled the little girl was.

"It wouldn't have happened if it weren't for you!" she grinned.

They stopped at the fountain with the grotesque demon statue that held green slime instead of water. She jumped up onto its ledge and began to walk on it with her arms outstretched to keep herself balanced. "So are you gonna rise from the slime again like you did last year?" she asked when she came back around to where he stood.

"Well actually, I was thinking that—" he was cut short by shouting that seemed to be growing louder.

"Jack! Jack!" It was the Mayor who was yelling at the top of his lungs, "Jack…" he stopped when he reached said king to quickly catch his breath, his face was the pale side of his head with a worried expression. "Oh it's horrible! Oogie has escaped and he's headed toward the Hinterlands!"

"What!?" the skeleton gasped as did Amelia, who had stopped walking on the fountain and had jumped down beside him when the elected official had approached.

"It's true! He's headed for the Holiday Doors. He plans on taking over all the holidays!" The mayor was in hysteria.

"Mayor, calm down," Jack said, "No need to panic, I'm on it." Just as he was about to take his leave, he stopped as he realized something. "Mayor," he turned toward the man in the tall top hat who was still slightly exhausted, "I need you to watch Ami for me."

"I, uh…" however before the mayor could agree, the king interrupted.

"Good. Don't worry, I'll handle this." The skeleton turned on his heel and headed out of town in a fast pace.

Still with his head turned to his worried face, the Mayor turned to the small child. "Well, come with me I guess." He then gestured for her to follow.

"Mr. Mayor, is Jack gonna be ok?" the little sorceress asked.

However, before he could answer, they were stopped by a mob of citizens who had questions of their own. They were all in a panic and the Mayor tried to calm the people down but with no avail.

Amelia clasped her hands together as concern and worry spread across her features, "I hope he will be alright." She spoke softly and looked down at the ground thinking of her tall, skeleton friend.

"Don't worry," a meek yet gentle voice spoke behind her. "He'll be alright."

The little child turned to be greeted by another small girl about her own age. However, she obviously wasn't human for her skin was green and her purple summer dress looked very old and torn. Her shoes were in no better condition than her clothing and seemed to be ready to fall off at any moment. The whites of her eyes were yellow while her eye color was red. The young sorceress realized she was looking at a zombie.

"Right now, I need to make sure you'll be alright," the zombie girl smiled.

"Huh?" was all Amelia could manage to say for she was very confused at the undead child's sudden appearance.

"Come on!" the zombie outstretched her hand as a gesture for the sorceress to take it.

Amelia then did something she hadn't done in a long while. She fisted her hand and placed it over her mouth, which signified her fear. She then took a few steps back away from the girl in front of her.

"It's ok, Jack sent me to take you someplace safe." The undead little girl offered a friendly smile. "And he also said to make sure you were _comfortable_." A small smirk graced her lips, though it went unnoticed by the small sorceress who was looking at the hand before her. "There is no other place in the world more comfortable than where we're going." She said cheerily.

'Well, she did say that Jack told her too so…' Amelia thought to herself. She lowered her hand from her face and then took the zombie's hand, "Ok."

"Good!" the green-skinned girl then led her through the town gates and down the old dirt path.

They traveled for some time and the town had disappeared beneath the horizon. They seemed to be in a less dense part of the forest for the numbers of trees dwindled. They finally came to a rather large tree on a piece of land that was surrounded by what looked like an empty moat. Within its branches was an old tree house that seemed to still be in use. They came to an old rickety, wooden bridge that had a large birdcage suspended by a long rope in the middle where some planks were missing. The zombie girl led the little sorceress into the cage and shut the door. Like an elevator, they were lifted slowly into the air and into the tree house above them. Light from the sun leaked in through the cracks in the roof thus lighting up the structure, albeit in only a few places. The undead child lit torches that were placed on the walls to further brighten up the room. Amelia now saw that the walls were decorated with all sorts of creepy, scary, demon like masks.

"Well this place is…" the young girl had to think for a moment to find an appropriate word, "nice…"

"Oh this isn't where _you're_ staying." The zombie girl stated, "You'll be _much_ safer once you go in there." She pointed to an opening in the wall that looked like a large pipe with eyes painted above it. Overall, it looked much like the face of a monster.

"A-are you sure I can even _fit_ through it?" the small sorceress was now very wary of trusting the undead child, "Why can't I stay here?" she gestured to the room around her.

"Oh, it's really not safe _here_. It is honestly better if you go through it." The green-skinned girl got behind Amelia and started to push her toward the opening.

"I really don't know about this." Panic began to overcome the small girl.

"Trust me," she continued to push her toward the chute, "Jack said it would be safe."

The young spell caster gulped, "Well…if he said it was…" she gripped the edge of the pipe and glanced back at the zombie who gestured for her to go. She took a deep breath and let it out before climbing into the chute. "AAAHHHHHH!!" she screamed as she slid down the pipe. "Oof!" was the sound she made when she landed on a flat, wooden surface. The room she was in now was so dark she couldn't even see her hand right in front of her face. All of a sudden, a black light switched on and everything began to glow eerie colors. She could now see she was in a room that reminded her of those casino commercials, only much scarier. There were torture devices everywhere like those she saw in the dungeons in movies and books. Then, she heard a beat and then jazz instruments began to play a strange tune. There was then a sudden burst of bright white light next to her and standing in that light was a monster that looked like a sack made of burlap. What scared her even more was that the monster began to sing to the tune.

"_Well, well, well what have we heard?_

_Jack's good huh?_

_Oh, how wrong that is!_

_So you haven't heard what everyone's talkin' about ha ha!_

_You're joking, you're joking,_

_I can't believe my eyes!_

_You're joking me, you gotta be,_

_You can't be on his side!_

_He's creepy, he's scary,_

_I don't know which is worse._

_I might just loose a bug here,_

_If I don't start crying first!_

_When Mister Oogie Boogie says,_

_There's trouble close at hand,_

_You better pay attention now!_

_Cause I'm the Boogie Man!_

_And if you aren't praising, then something's very wrong,_

_Cause this won't be the last time you hear the Boogie Song!_"

Amelia was shocked when she realized just who the monster was, Oogie Boogie! The same Boogie Man that Jack had warned her about. The burlap sack-like monster danced as he sang. He even had skeletons and bats as back up singers!

"Ohhh." Sang three bats.

"Ohhh" Sang Oogie Boogie.

"Ohhh" Sang seven skeletons.

"Ohhh" The Boogie Man sang again.

"Ohhh, he's the Oogie Boogie Man." The skeletons sang once more before Oogie continued.

"_If I'm feeling happy,_

_And there's nothin' much to do,_

_I might just make a special batch,_

_Of snake and spider stew!_

_And don't ya know the one thing,_

_That would make it so nice?_

_A tiny-twiggy Pumpkin King to add a little spice!_"

"Ohhh." The skeleton group sang.

"Oh yeah." Oogie added.

"Ohhh." The three bats added their part.

"Ohhh." The bug monster repeated.

"Ohhh." Sang the three bats again.

"Oh yeah, I'm the Boogie Man!" Oogie sang.

Amelia, who was still on her spot where she had landed on a circular table, found herself unable to stop as soon as she spoke the words that left her mouth in rhythm, "Release me now or you must face the dire consequences! Jack is expecting me so please come to your senses!"

"_You're jokin' you're jokin!_" Oogie continued.

_I can't believe my ears!_

_Would some shut this child up?_

_I'm drowning in my fears!_

_It's weird, I'm crying!_

_You really are too much._

_And now with your permission,_

_I'm going to do my stuff._"

"Well what are you going to do?" the scared and confused sorceress asked.

"I'm gonna do the best I can!" he answered and started back up again.

"_Oh the sound of rollin' dice,_

_To me is music in the air!_

_'Cause I'm a gamblin' Boogie Man,_

_Although I_ do _play fair!_

_It's much more fun I must confess,_

_With lives on the line!_

_Not mine of course but I'm just kiddin',_

_So don't be so skiddish,_

_Oh poor friend of mine!"_

Amelia scowled and spoke in time again, "Release me fast or you'll be sorry when you have to deal with Jack!"

The Boogie Man smirked at the little sorceress who was obviously in great fear and anger at the same time.

"_Oh sister, you're something!_

_You put me in a spin!_

_You aren't comprehending,_

_The position they're in!_

_It's hopeless, town's finished!_

_You haven't got a prayer!_

_Except for me Oogie Boogie,_

_But I can't go nowhere!_"

The instrumentalists then finished the song. High-pitched cackling was heard from a strange trio that decided to make their appearance. The girl she recognized as the zombie girl who led her here and the two boys as part of the trio Jack had warned her about. However, the girl ripped off her disguise to reveal her purple witch's costume for she was none other than the third member, Shock.

"You three!" Amelia yelled, "Release me! Let me go! I wanna get out of here!" she nearly screamed as she leapt off the round table and tried to find an exit.

"Good luck trying to find your way out sister!" Oogie called. "Though I wouldn't want to go back if I were you, especially since you've befriended that no good Jack Skellington."

"What do you mean!?" she turned to face him, tears of terror in her eyes. "Jack is a good guy! You're the bad guy here!" she pointed an accusing finger toward him.

She opened her mouth and she sang a rather hypnotic melody, however, her singing had no effect on the burlap monster and his henchmen. When she ceased her hypnotism, they all pulled out ear plugs for they had expected she would use her special gift.

"Oh I was afraid it had come to this," Oogie said as a sorrow filled expression spread across his face, which were really just folds in the sack that he was made out of.

"Huh?" the poor little girl was confused yet again.

Lock brought out a violin from behind his back and began to play a sad, sappy tune.

"You see, everything Jack has told you about me has been nothing but a lie. For as he probably did tell you, I was once the King of Halloween, but I was a good ruler and everyone loved me! But one day, that no good skeleton came to town and took away my throne! He then brainwashed everyone into thinking I was evil, save for my only friends," he gestured to the trio near him, "Because he made everyone believe I was so bad, he had me banished! I tried to convince the citizens otherwise but they wouldn't listen to reason!" he stopped momentarily to sob, "So I was sent away and locked up in here. Lock, Shock, and Barrel were the only ones left who knew the truth since they managed to escape Jack's wrath. They've helped me try to gain back my throne ever since, but obviously with no luck. No one ever believes them when they try to tell my people the truth." He sobbed.

By this time, said trio was bawling at the story. Barrel even had a box of tissues which he and Shock were using. The girl in the purple witch costume blew her nose extremely loud before Oogie continued.

"They told me about you and how he was telling you all these lies. I always knew he was cruel but to lie to a little girl? I thought that was low even for him!"

"Poor Amelia!" Barrel said with deep sadness in his voice and he too blew his nose rather loudly.

"Yes, poor little Amelia indeed." Oogie agreed woefully, "But I want to help you get back at him for doing such a thing to you."

"You're lying!" said sorceress shouted, "Jack would never do that to me!" however, tears began to cascade down the sides of her face.

"I can help you if you let me. I can tell you how you can get back at him." Oogie said encouragingly. "All that I would ask of you in return is to help me regain my rightful place as King of Halloween Town!"

She looked away in thought, she was still very doubtful of anything that he said.

He noticed this immediately and thought up of something that might be enough to change her mind. "Tell me, has Jack ever acted _strange_?" as he said this, Lock stopped playing his violin before the ex-bug king continued, "Say you asked him something and he kept avoiding the question entirely for reasons unknown?" he knew he hit the spot because her expression had changed to that of realization. "Did you ever wonder why he sent you home? And only a few days after meeting Lock, Shock, and Barrel?" he had her full attention now, "You see, the reason Jack sent you home was not for your own safety, it was for his own. He wanted to make sure you didn't find out the truth. That's why he didn't explain why he made you leave."

Amelia looked to the floor in deep thought, 'That would explain a lot.' She contemplated over what had happened in the past and Oogie's offer. She lifted her head up to face him with a determined expression, "I'm in."

"Good." The monster grinned wickedly and he chuckled darkly.

Shock received quiet low-fives from her comrades.

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**Gotta love parodies of your favorite songs. XD Speaking of which, the parody of Oogie Boogie's Song was done by my good friend Kiki! I hope you all enjoyed it! **

**I don't own Oogie Boogie's Song but Kiki owns the parody. **


	8. The Pumpkin King

**Hello good people of FFN! Surprisingly, this is probably one of the shortest chapters in this so far yet I consider it one of the best! Isn't that wierd? Well, enough of my useless ramblings, on with the story!**

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"Drat that no good Oogie Boogie

"Drat that no good Oogie Boogie!" Jack yelled as he stormed down the path back into town. "No doubt it's one of his tricks again." He halted his brisk pace as a thought occurred to him, "But wait, why exactly did he send me on this wild goose chase?" he held his chin as he pondered. His hand fell back down to his side and his jaw dropped as he came to a realization. "Amelia!" He dashed down the old road and straight into town. Frantically, he searched for the Mayor. He soon spotted the stout man with the tall hat and his head switched to his blue, worried expression.

"Mayor!" he shouted and rushed up to him.

"Jack, oh thank goodness you're back! Everyone is panicking and—" he was cut off.

"Where's Amelia." The Pumpkin King demanded.

"I, uh…" The Mayor became anxious. "I'm so sorry Jack, but I've seemed to have lost track of her."

"Just as I feared," Jack clenched his hands, "Do you know where she might have gone?" he asked sternly.

The Mayor gravely shook his head no.

With that, the skeleton yet again sprinted off toward the gate leading out of town. 'Curse that Oogie Boogie!' he thought angrily, 'I'm going to finish this once and for all!'

Soon he arrived at the tree with the surrounding dry moat. Though he had half a mind to burst right into his lair, Jack knew he would have an advantage if he snuck in. Agile like a spider, he climbed down the rope that suspended the elevator bird cage in front of a window leading into the monster's domain. He was surprised not to find the infamous trio inside the cage but actually in the hideout when he peered through the broken glass. He put the best of his abilities to the test and slipped in discreetly and quietly as possible. He heard an all too familiar cackling that he immediately identified as the burlap-sack monstrosity he was after.

"Black Widow you never cease to amaze me! I guess it was a good thing that that no good, lying Pumpkin King taught you so much about magic!" The boogie man grinned at the small child.

'Black Widow?' Jack's curiosity had been peaked. When he got in close enough, it took all of his will power not to make a sound or to march over to Oogie and throttle him. The ex-bug king had given Amelia a nickname, but that wasn't what had made him so enraged. The little sorceress standing a few yards away from him was but a mere shadow of the girl he once knew. Her black headband had been disposed of and her sandy blonde hair was now in spooky disarray. Her homemade costume was dyed black and even more torn up than before. A purple sash was tied around her waist that matched the color of her surprisingly long fingernails. She wore gray stockings with holes in them and black shoes on her feet. But worst of all, her eyes. They were no longer blue as the sky and full of spirit. Now they were dark and lifeless, much like the expression on her face. Her once happy demeanor had been replaced with that of an emotionless zombie. Her cheerful smile had vanished practically along with her human nature.

Jack felt a pang in his heart as he stared upon the once joyful child who now seemed to be possessed by an unknown darkness. His sadness was soon replaced with that of rage as he glared at ex-bug king, still unaware of his presence. Like before, he sneaked around in the old torture casino unnoticeably until he was behind a large stack of dice that was nearby Oogie so he would be able to easily make his strike. Right as he was about to make his move, he found that he couldn't. He tried again only to discover he had been rendered immobile. His eye sockets widened as realization hit him and he slowly turned his head. He found himself face to face with the lifeless Amelia, her hand outstretched toward him. She had levitated herself to be at his incredible height and used a spell to prevent him from any movement.

"Your plan worked Oogie." She stated devoid of any emotion.

"Just as I thought!" said monster let out another maniacal laughter.

She let herself float back down onto the ground and walked toward Oogie, the still frozen Pumpkin King was levitated alongside her.

"You know old friend, you really shouldn't have taught her how to control people through their shadows. Or how to render her victim motionless!" the burlap sack-like monster cackled. "I just know you too well. It was far too easy to predict that you'd be coming to her "rescue" so I planned a trap and it worked like a charm! I knew once you got in here you would be so busy with your hatred toward me and your worry toward her that you would fail to notice that she had merely cast an image of herself while the real one was waiting in the shadows for you!"

That moment was the first time Jack had ever regretted for teaching her sorcery. But he knew that she still wasn't a full-fledged sorceress, so although she may have rendered his body motionless, he could still speak. "Oogie this time you've gone too far! How _dare_ you corrupt her mind so that she would side with you!"

"_Me_? Corrupt her mind?" said villain tried to look innocent, "Oh no, I'm afraid you've got it all backwards. For you see, all I did was tell her the truth. It was _you_ who corrupted her mind!" he pointed an accusing finger toward the skeleton.

"What on _earth_ are you _talking_ about?" Jack demanded, obviously not understanding his insane logic.

The bug monster grinned wickedly and let out another laugh. "Are you that _daft_ Jack?" when Amelia walked over to the ex-bug king he put a hand on her shoulder, "How could you lie to a mere _child_? I knew you lied to an entire town but to a little _girl_? Why I do believe that's low even for you."

"For the last time," he had grown very impatient and even more angered, "I have _no_ idea what you're talking about."

"Well I guess I just have to spell it out for you," Oogie sighed, "You're the one who stole my throne and my town from me. You made everyone believe you were the true king and banished me!" he glared at the skeleton in front of him. "And then you go telling your _lie_ to poor Amelia, making her believe that you were her friend when you were really trying to steal her powers from her."

"Drat you Oogie!" Jack yelled, "You know very well. That. Is. Not. True."

Said infamous monster smirked, "I know what's true, now you just try convincing _her_."

The Pumpkin King's expression softened a little as he looked to the mentioned sorceress. "Amelia please, Oogie is the one I was trying to warn you about! He lies, cheats, and even worse than those troublesome three over there." He gestured as best he could to the trio, who glared angrily toward him and stuck out their tongues. "You've got to believe me Ami," he thought maybe her nickname would snap her out of it, "I'm not the bad guy here, he is. I'm your friend and always will be your friend. I would never do anything to hurt you."

"Lies!" she shouted, slightly surprising Jack. Then, her once blank expression turned to that of pure rage and she once again rose into the air, "I now know why you wouldn't tell me why you forced me to go home! It wasn't to keep me out of danger, it was to keep you out of it! You knew that I was going to find out the truth so you sent me away to prevent it from happening!" tears slowly began to shed, "That explains why you didn't trust me!"

Before Jack had a chance to explain himself, she closed her eyes, opened her mouth and began to sing. However, it was no longer the soft, almost sweet, hypnotic melody. Instead, it was filled with anger, hatred, and sadness. He realized that through Oogie's words, he had crushed her spirit and practically obliterated any hope of him getting back the old Amelia. He felt himself start to succumb to her spell.

"Her voice is one to _die_ for isn't it Jack?" the burlap sack-like creature chuckled evilly. He and the trio had already put in their ear plugs the moment she began shouting at the quickly fading Pumpkin King.

The skeleton finally felt his mind become separated from his body. His head dropped forward, chin rested against his chest. Amelia then ceased her melody and gently landed back on solid ground.

"You did it Black Widow!" he laughed hysterically. The trio attempted to join in but he roared at them, "SILENCE!" to which they immediately shut up. Oogie then grinned wickedly, "Now, order that useless Pumpkin King to terrorize his own town until they surrender to me."

"Yes Mr. Oogie." She complied and released the skeleton from his invisible bindings, "Jack, I command you to use the best of your scaring abilities to terrify Halloween Town until they give into Oogie's reign as the new Pumpkin King."

His head raised up slowly and a small red light glowed within his eye sockets, "As you command, Amelia." He spoke with a lifeless tone then opened the large doors leading upward and out of the lair. Oogie, Amelia, and the trick-or-treaters followed right behind.

While they walked on the road to town, Oogie had never felt so joyous. 'Who would of thought I'd be thanking a ten year-old for my seizing control over Halloween.' He was practically tickled pink at the thought.

Soon they arrived at the entrance gate. Jack opened the gate with the small sorceress' orders in mind and walked to the town square. The others stayed behind until it was necessary to make themselves known.

Jack leisurely walked into town and turned his head in the direction he heard his name shouted.

"Jack!" The Mayor rushed up to him, the happy side of his face shown, "Did you manage find Amelia?" When Jack didn't respond, the Mayor looked closer at him and noticed the red glow in his eyes, "Jack?" his face turned to his pale, worried expression.

"Yes I did Mayor," the skeleton finally responded, however his voice was dark and his glare was evil, "and she convinced me of something." He grinned wickedly and his voice grew louder, "To relinquish my throne to someone much more deserving."

The stout man with the tall top hat began to take a few steps back, "A-and who would that be?"

"The Boogie Man!" he let out a cackle that could terrify the bravest of men.

The Mayor, being most definitely not one of the bravest of men, screamed in terror and ran off as fast as his small legs could carry him.

"One down," the king looked in the direction of the rest of the town square, "A measly little town to go!"

Using scare tactics only heard of in horror novels, he terrorized the town. He even scared some of the most of fearsome creatures. With his dark magic, he cast up a gigantic spider to trap the vampires in a huge, sticky web. A termite of equal size went after the dead tree with the skeletons suspended from its branches. A slightly smaller, but still large cockroach to make the smaller monsters run in fear. A dragon fly of monstrous proportions took to the skies after the petite witches and any other flying creatures. The remaining who ran in circles in a panic he went after himself. By transforming into a shadow, Jack snuck up on the ones who hid in the dark. He would emerge from their silhouettes and then let out a horrible moan which forced them out of their shelters and into the open. Once he stepped out from the shadows, he outstretched one of his hands toward the ground and oddly colored snakes with stripes appeared. They winded their way through the people and wrapped their bodies around their legs which forced them all to trip and fall onto the ground, unable to move.

Jack laughed yet again and then leaped up onto the head of the demon sculpture fountain. "Listen everyone!" he proclaimed, "There's more trouble close at hand! You'd better pay attention now 'cause here comes the Boogie Man!"

As if cue, Oogie Boogie walked into the frantic scene, towering over them all, with Amelia, Lock, Shock, and Barrel at his side. "People of Halloween Town!" his voice boomed over their terror-filled screams, "I will only stop Jack's rampage if you agree to crown me as King of Halloween!"

"Never you fiend!" The Mayor appeared from wherever he had been hiding.

"Is that so?" the ex-bug king leaned over to look the Mayor square in the eye, "Jack, I believe you didn't scare this one quite enough."

With that said the 'Master of Fright' leapt down from his place on the statue's head and began to approach the elected official.

"Alright, alright!" he waved his hands frantically, not wanting to fall victim to an even more horrible fate than the others, "If you get rid of this madness," he gulped as he faced Oogie, "W-we'll surrender Halloween to you." It was obvious that was a painful thing for the Mayor to say for his face had contorted while he spoke.

"Excellent!" the soon-to-be king exclaimed gleefully. "Black Widow, would you do the honors?"

Amelia closed her eyes and rose into the air, landing gracefully on the statue's head where Jack had stood. She opened her eyes and without looking, she reached into her sleeve and pulled out her spell book. She flipped it to the page she needed and outstretched her hand toward the havoc before her, "_Ego debello monasteriense de obscurum._" A dark aura seemed to emit off her, then trail down her arm and out towards the town. All the large creatures Jack had summoned turned into a similar black light and rose into the air to join with the shadow that swirled above. The dark light then condensed into a small circle and continually grew smaller until it completely vanished. Amelia let out a deep breath and began to stagger a bit from exhaustion. She crouched down and held onto the top of the statue's head to prevent herself from falling. She didn't have enough energy to levitate herself back down onto solid ground.

The townspeople where greatly relieved to be rid of the monstrosities that had terrorized them, however, that only lasted a moment as they realized what the creatures did would pale in comparison to what Oogie, as their new king, could do to them. They wanted to flee but his voice suddenly boomed over all, which prevented them from even thinking about attempting to hide.

"Now people of Halloween Town! Your true Pumpkin King has come to rule!" the new king proclaimed.

Shouts of protests were their reaction.

"We want Jack back!"

"Return him back to normal!"

"You're not the real Pumpkin King!"

"We don't want you as our king!"

"SILENCE!" The self-proclaimed king roared. "I'm your Pumpkin King whether you like it or not!" he had become fed up with the way the citizens rejected him. "Black Widow, do you think you could straighten them out for me?"

Amelia looked up tiredly to the new King of Halloween and slowly nodded her head. She staggered again as she got up but managed to regain her balance. Inhaling a deep breath, she began to sing her dark, lulling, hypnotic song. All who heard the sweet, yet scary melody succumbed to the song, except for Oogie and his henchmen who had put in their ear plugs, and of course Jack who was already under the spell. She stopped her song when everyone in town had surrendered to her hypnotism and held a red glow in their eyes similar to that of the ex-Pumpkin King

"Good," the new Pumpkin King commented, "Now tell them that they are to obey my every command."

"Citizens of Halloween Town!" she shouted, "By order of the new king, you all must follow his commands without protest!" she paused a moment before she added, "Everyone hail to King Oogie Boogie!"

The people got down on their knees and bowed with their arms stretched out in front of them.

"Yes! You are all under my control!" the self-proclaimed king let out another terrifying cackle. "It won't be long before I become the Seven Holidays King!"

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**DUN DUN DUUUN!! Bet you didn't see that coming!! Well, you probably did, lol. Anyway, please don't kill me! Things will change I promise! Reviews make me smile and type faster! :)**


	9. The Overthrow of King Oogie

**A big thanks to JainaZekk621 and NarutoPhantom for their reviews! Here's your reward!! **

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As Oogie's evil cackle rang through the air, Amelia began to go through inner turmoil

As Oogie's evil cackle rang through the air, Amelia's mind had begun to go through inner turmoil.

'Why do I feel as if this is really bad?' she questioned herself. She looked at the scene before her from her place on the grotesque monster statue's head.

All the citizens who had become her friends all had expressions of zombies instead of the scary, yet cheerful ones. They were all bowing before their new Pumpkin King while he just looked down on them, full of his own arrogance.

'This isn't right.' She finally started to understand the real situation.

'_Yes it is_,' a voice in the back of her mind spoke to her, '_They deserve this. Jack deserves this. He betrayed you, he lied to you._'

'But he even said that he would never do anything to harm me.' The young girl was in a state of confusion.

'_Then why did he keep secrets from you? Didn't that hurt you? Does that not make you think he doesn't trust you?_'

'But he said he was trying to protect me.' She then came to a realization, 'He _was_trying to protect me! He was protecting me from this, from Oogie using my powers for his own gain!'

'_No! The Boogie Man is the true King of Halloween and he made Jack pay for what he did to you!_'

'But what did Jack ever really do to me?' she questioned the voice, 'All he ever did was teach me sorcery so that no one would find out that I was really human. I'm sure that's why he didn't tell me why he sent me home, to protect my identity and me from getting hurt!'

'_Didn't you hear Oogie? Everything you know is a lie! A lie made up by that no good skeleton! Now he's getting what he deserves, a town no longer under his control! Also now with your help, our new Pumpkin King will soon become King of all the holidays!_'

She gasped at the thought of The Boogie Man in control of every holiday. The human world would be in mass chaos if that happened, not to mention the people of the other holiday towns. 'I've got to stop him.'

'_No! You mustn't, it's too late now. What can a scared little girl do against the new king of all fears?_'

'He's no master of fright because the real one is my friend, Jack Skellington!' With that, the voice was silenced. Amelia's eyes returned to their normal ocean blue, her spirit returned as well. Her pale skin also regained its natural color and her excessively long nails shrunk to their normal size. Her expression was no longer that of a lifeless soul for she was now back to her cheerful self.

Amelia slowly tired to get up from her spot on the demon statue's head but with no avail. She was still very exhausted from performing the spell that returned all the monsters back into shadows. 'Great, how am I supposed to defeat Oogie like this?' she questioned herself, 'Even more, how can I when I'm all alone?' she looked to the side with a depressed look on her face, however it lit up as soon as she spotted someone and thought of an idea. "Jack, come over here."

The skeleton turned to the little girl on the top of the fountain and walked toward her. He then waited to hear what it was that she wanted.

"You silly Pumpkin King," she smiled, "You should never listen to me sing."

Suddenly, the red glow in his eyes faded and his dark demeanor disappeared. The hypnotic spell had been broken and he was now back to his old self as well. Slightly confused, he looked up to the small child who had freed him, "Amelia? What are you doing up there?" he was oblivious to what was happening near by.

"Um, that's not important. Uh, can you please get me down? I kinda sorta wore myself out and can't levitate" she grinned sheepishly.

Jack gave a small chuckle and held out his arms, "Jump down, I'll catch you."

She then took notice exactly how high up she was, which was pretty high considering the statue itself was taller than Jack.

He noticed her hesitation right away, "It's ok Ami, trust me."

With those words, she looked him in the eyes and immediately felt guilty for when she didn't believe him and sided with Oogie. Right then and there she decided to never doubt her good friend again. "Ok," she gave a curt nod. She still clutched the top of the statue as she stood up. Then, she took a deep breath, clenched her eyes shut, and jumped.

Jack caught her with ease, although she squeaked in fear of colliding with the ground instead of landing in his arms.

"See? What'd I tell you?" he beamed at her then set her down on her own two feet.

"I'm so sorry for not believing you!" she began to pour out her heart and soul into her sudden apologies, tears had begun to roll down her cheeks, "I'm sorry I listened to Oogie and hypnotized you! I'm sorry I helped him take over Halloween!"

"Amelia," he was taken aback at he sudden outburst, "what are you talking abou—" he finally comprehended what she had said in her last sentence, "Wait, what?"

"Oogie crowned himself as the new Pumpkin King and I helped him with his evil plan! I hypnotized the townspeople into surrendering!" she placed her hands on her face and sobbed violently.

Jack looked over to the town square and sure enough, there was the ex-bug king who had started to bark out orders to the citizens and they complied without protest. Although it was a problem that needed to be handled soon, the skeleton knew that Amelia's fragile spirit was more important to him.

He kneeled to be eye level with her and placed a comforting hand upon her shoulder. "Amelia," she looked up to him as he said her name, "it's not entirely your fault. I'm to blame as well. I trust you and should have told you what kind of danger you were in before so that this wouldn't have happened." He gestured to the people following the new king's every command. "You see, I had a feeling he was up to something when I was holding that spider you found. I was sure it was one of his little tricks to spy on you and me so that's why I sent you home. I just didn't want to see you get hurt, or have your real identity be revealed. That would have led to an even worse situation."

The little girl sniffled and then wrapped her arms around him in a grateful hug, "I'm still sorry."

"I understand," he said as he returned the embrace, "and I forgive you." After a moment or so had passed, they released each other and he stood up, "Now how do you think we're going to fix this mess?" he scratched his head while he pondered a solution.

Amelia put her finger on her chin in thought, and then a thought suddenly popped into her head, "I think I have an idea." She gestured for him to lean down. When he did, she cupped her hand and whispered into his ear.

"You know, I think that just might work!" he exclaimed.

"Black Widow!" Oogie called.

The two of them quickly stood upright, trying to imitate the state they were both in just a moment before. She with her cold, emotionless stare and he with a look of a zombie controlled like a puppet. She walked toward the newly crowned king as the skeleton walked obediently behind her.

"There you are." the Boogie Man chuckled, "Thought you disappeared on me for a second." He paused a moment and looked closer at her face and then Jack's, "Black Widow, why does Jack no longer have that strange red glow in his eyes?"

"I assume it began to fade the longer he was under the spell." She spoke with as little emotion as possible and hoped he would buy her quick lie. She was thankful that her costume didn't undergo any change like the rest of her when she discovered the real truth.

He raised a would-be eyebrow as he looked at the ex-Pumpkin King once more. "I see," he then simply shrugged and turned around.

However, he felt his movements being controlled as he soon found himself staring at his shadow cast upon a brick wall. "Hey, what's going on?" his anger began to rise.

"_You? The Pumpkin King? That's the best laugh I've had in years!_" a voice eerily similar to his own spoke.

Oogie nearly fell over as he realized his shadow on the wall had spoken to him. "What gives? Why is my shadow talking to me?" he wanted to turn around and question the only sorceress he knew capable of such a task, but once again found he couldn't. "Why can't I move!?"

"_And you think you're fit to rule over _all_ of Halloween?_" his shadow cackled again.

"Of course I am! I got rid of that no good Jack after all!" said ruler actually argued back.

"_You? I think not! I do believe that if it wasn't for a certain little _girl_, you would still be back in that casino you call a home!_" the silhouette knew he wounded his counterpart's pride at the mention of the fact. "_You would never be able to take control of Halloween Town all by yourself!_"

"You have no right to tell me that! I'm the King of Halloween now and I don't need my own shadow to doubt me!" Oogie's anger rose even more.

"_Without Amelia, you're nothing but a pathetic little insect!_" the shadow shot back.

"What!?" the bug king roared.

"_Give_ _it up. You're no _real_ Master of Fright._" The dark form against the wall obviously thought very little of the burlap sack-like monster.

Just as the self-proclaimed king was about to say his comeback, a voice was heard hat made his own die in his throat.

"You know Oogie. I taught Ami a lot more tricks than you know of." Jack walked up right next to the infamous monster, his arms crossed and a glare in his eyes that shot daggers at the so-called king. "Such as, shadow manipulation with the ability to throw her voice as her victim's own."

With that said, the monster found he could turn his head just enough to see behind him. There stood Amelia with her arms crossed, a wicked grin across her face as well as a look of triumph.

"You shouldn't have tricked me." She said in Oogie's voice, which was very odd to see come from such a small child. "You'll pay for it dearly."

Jack grabbed one of the loose seams on the self-proclaimed ruler's shoulder and began to pull.

The Boogie Man immediately saw where the situation was quickly headed. "Please!" he cried out for mercy, which halted the skeleton from pulling anymore on the string, "Don't hurt me! What is it that you want? Name your price." He thought he might be able to bargain his way out of trouble.

"Renounce the throne and return it to me." Jack demanded as he stared coldly at the quickly crumbling king.

"What!? Never!" Oogie shouted.

The real Master of Fright pulled again at the seam, which was now even looser than before and bugs began to crawl out.

"Alright, alright fine! You win!" he shouted to prevent himself from falling apart.

As soon as Jack had let go, the arrogant ruler tried to strike him with his other massive arm. However, the true leader of Halloween dodged the blow easily like an agile spider.

The burlap sack monster rapidly became even more infuriated, "Townspeople! Attack them!"

The hypnotized citizens quickly advanced toward their targets.

"Amelia, now!" Jack hollered.

"Citizens of Halloween!" the small sorceress shouted over the commotion, "Never listen to me sing!"

All at once, they halted their charge and the red glow in their eyes disappeared. For a moment they were all confused and a murmur spread among them but were silenced when her voice rang out again.

"Oogie had fooled you all into thinking he's the King of Halloween and that Jack was evil!" she shouted, "He's going to try and escape so help us get him!" she pointed in the direction to said villain.

Just as she had said, Oogie did try and escape but with little luck. His massive size made him so slow that he barely even got a few yards away before he was cornered by every creature, ghoul, and ghost in town.

"N-no! She's lying! I uh…" he was fresh out of excuses and couldn't think of a good one off the top of his head.

"It's over Oogie." Jack stated as he walked up to him with Amelia at his side. "I hereby reclaim my rightful place as Pumpkin King and banish you from ever setting foot into Halloween Town ever again! Forever you shall remain in your lair, never to come out again!"

When the Boogie Man was about to protest, the re-crowned king snapped his fingers and the monster's mouth was kept shut. The skeleton then turned to the young girl beside him with a smile on his face, "Amelia, do you feel up for one more spell?"

"I think I can manage." She beamed up at him.

She then took a step forward, reached into her sleeve, and brought out her spell book. She opened it to the page she needed and held out her hand toward the soon-to-be-exiled creature. "_Ego expello vos ut vestri domus nunquam aborior pes in nostrum urbs iterum._"

Just like when the spell she had cast to vanquish the monsters that had been summoned, a dark light appeared in the sky and sucked Oogie in, continually growing smaller until there was nothing left.

The citizens rejoiced. Screams, whoops and hollers were heard throughout the warped, story book-like town. Everyone gathered in the town square and Jack stepped up onto the ledge of the fountain so that he could be seen.

"Good people of Halloween Town!" he called joyously, "I am pleased to announce that Oogie Boogie will terrorize us no more!"

Once again, the sounds of joy and excitement rang from every creature and monster alike. Even Amelia joined in all the yelling.

"And now," he got their attention again, silencing their celebration, "I have a very special announcement to make that will effect all of Halloween." Ignoring the confused looks of the citizens, he outstretched his hand toward the small sorceress standing nearby as a gesture for her to come up where he stood.

Although a little shy and nervous about not knowing what was going on, she took his hand in hers and he pulled her up onto the ledge.

"Our own little terror is the one to thank for the Boogie Man's defeat for she is the one who broke the hypnotic spell not only cast upon myself but all of you as well. She's a true hero for she is the one who saved Halloween itself! And, for her bravery and great courage, I am giving her an honor that no one else in the history of Halloween Town has ever received." He held out his hand toward the audience and a circlet crown magically appeared in his palm. It was entirely made out of silver. It had beautifully crafted pumpkins, leaves and vines that fit the Halloween style. On the front of the crown a blue gem, the same color as her eyes, hung in the shape of a teardrop. The circlet sparkled in the jack-o-lantern sun. "Today marks the day in our history that we crown our first," he began to place the crown upon her head, "Princess of Halloween!"

After a brief moment of silence from the surprise, the town cried out in cheers again. All yelled and clapped for their new princess. As for the just named royal herself, she was in utter shock and disbelief. Her eyes were wide though her pupils were, for once, not their normal microscopic dots. She was absolutely speechless.

Jack held up his hand for silence which they all complied, "I now announce Amelia as my heir to the Pumpkin throne. I have faith in her and her marvelous talents and so I see a great leader within her spirit. I know that one day I will no longer be fit to run this wonderful holiday and I will entrust her with the responsibilities when that day comes." He saw the shocked faces of the audience so he added, "But that is some time from now, I plan on keeping the throne for quite a long time. And when I believe it is time for me to step down, Princess Amelia will inherit the throne."

The crowd burst out with mad, rapid clapping. Jack and Amelia stepped down off the fountain's ledge which told everyone it was time to return to their homes, most of which continued their celebration along the way. The new Princess of Halloween touched her crown, still in disbelief of what had just happened. When they were inside Jack's home and up in the tower, she couldn't help but question his actions.

"Jack, why me?" her hand lightly brushed over her circular band-like crown again.

"Well that's easy," he beamed and kneeled to be eye level with her, "You overcame your greatest obstacle, your fears. You saved not only me and the entire town but our holiday itself! You really deserved it and you know I wasn't lying when I said that I had complete trust and faith in you. I know that you're someone I can hand over my duties to."

She smiled brightly and embraced him to which he returned the gesture, "Thank you Jack, thank you so much. If it weren't for you, I would've never been able to overcome my fears. I really owe you a lot. Not only that but you helped me in the darkest hour. I think it's you who deserves a great honor."

"Thank you Ami," he chuckled, "but I just helped you. You still conquered your enemies, inner and outer, completely on your own."

She laughed and let go of him, "Well I still dub you the greatest king ever."

"Thank you," he bowed, "Princess Amelia."

--

_The soul of the young girl in the beginning of our tale looks to you. Her eyes are soft and a small smile graces her lips. Quietly, she speaks. _

_And finally, everything worked out just fine_

_Halloween was saved, in just the nick of time._

_But after that event, as you can guess_

_It was still questioned why she is the Pumpkin Princess. _

_What happens now that she is the heir?_

_Just what exactly is Jack up to?_

_I do believe that there's something in the air. _

_Another story is about to unfold_

_And I shall be here to have it told._

_But who am I you inquire? _

_Listen to The Nightmare Before Halloween_

_If to know is your desire._

_Just like that, she disappears with the breeze and no trace of her presence is left. _

**

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**Amelia is a princess? What!? A sequel! What!? XD Yes there will be a sequel called _The Nightmare Before Halloween. _An overused title yes I know but it fits. DON'T THINK THE STORY ENDS HERE!! There's going to be an epilogue that you MUST read! It's important, not to mention the first part is funny and I love it lol.**

**Please reveiw because reviews make me smile!! :)**


	10. Epilogue: A Strange Occurrence

**Behold! The last chapter in The Nightmare on Hallow's Eve: The Epilogue!! **

**Enjoy!**

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A day passed in Halloween Town and Jack had yet one more promise to keep to his word

A day passed in Halloween Town and Jack had yet one more promise to fulfill. He and Amelia went into the human world where it was still Halloween and spotted three boys who played pranks on nearly every house and little kid in the neighborhood.

"You ready?" the Pumpkin King asked the princess.

"Let's do it!" she said excitedly and walked right up to the boys while he stayed behind, lurking in the shadows.

"Hey Trevor, John, Cody." she had her hand fisted and on her mouth as she approached the thirteen year-old boys.

"What do you want crybaby?" Trevor spat as all three of them glared down at her, trying to look intimidating.

"I thought I saw something really creepy and scary nearby. Can you guys go see what it is?" she pleaded and even started to quiver as she spoke.

The three boys exchanged glances and thought the same thing, 'There's no way anything she'd be able to would ever get even with us.' So since they were so full of arrogance, they complied and followed behind her.

She led them down a path in the woods and when the houses could no longer be seen in the distance, she stopped but didn't turn around to face the bullies.

"Well, where is it?" Cody asked.

"Yeah, what's this big bad, _scary_ thing you're afraid of?" John nearly laughed as he spoke.

She then turned around really slowly in an almost creepy sort of way and faced them. Her eyes were blank and her face emotionless, "Beware for Skellington Jack might catch you in the back and scream like a banshee."

The pre-teens looked to one another in total confusion.

"What are you babbling about?" John asked the odd girl as he crossed his arms.

All of a sudden, there was a shriek in the woods that seemed to surround them on all sides. It was a cry so frightful that the boys had even huddled together for safety.

"Amelia what on earth is going on!?" Cody shouted at the ten year-old.

Her emotionless face grew wicked and a sly grin graced her lips, "Beware of the Pumpkin King."

"Pumpkin King?" the three bullies asked in unison, their confusion returning.

Before they could get any kind of explanation, another screech was heard and the three boys saw a tall silhouette approach from behind the little girl. They stammered incoherently but Trevor managed to point in the direction of the spooky shadow.

A tall skeleton that wore a pinstripe suit with a bat bowtie came into view. A wicked smile was across his face as well as a haunting stare. He raised his arms and his fingers stretched out to look like claws. "I am the Pumpkin King!" he cried, letting out another fearful cackle.

The three boys screamed in terror and fled, though they tripped several times over tree roots in their frantic attempt to get away.

Once they were gone from view, Amelia clutched her stomach from laughing so hard at the comedic sight and even Jack joined in her amusement.

"Did you see the look on their faces!?" she said as she tried to suppress her giggles.

"They most certainly lived up to the phrase of being scared out of your pants." His chuckling also began to die down. After a moment or so, he spoke again, "Well come on now, let's go back home."

"Yes let's." she beamed up at the skeleton and tailed behind him as he walked off deeper into the woods toward the Holiday Doors.

Once a few moments had passed, Jack decided to break the silence by asking a question that had been on his mind for some time.

"Ami, there's one thing you haven't told me about yourself." he smiled as the little girl looked up to him. "You never told me your last name."

"Oh well," her eyes averted his to look at the road before them, "It was kind of embarrassing until recently."

He raised a would-be eyebrow at the strange comment.

"My name is Amelia Brave." She then looked back up to him.

"Ah, I see now," he chuckled lightly, "a frightened child with the last name of 'brave,' now _that's_ ironic."

"Yeah," she laughed softly, "That's why I didn't say anything about it before because I was worried you'd laugh at me." Her eyes were downcast.

"I promise you this Ami," he stated, "I'll never laugh at anything you have to say to me that is really important to you." He beamed at the girl again.

"Thank you," she smiled warmly up at him, "that means a lot."

"Not a problem," he then returned his gaze to the road in front of them. "Amelia Brave," he said again, "that's a very nice name."

--

Another few days passed and it was finally time for Amelia Brave to leave and return to the human world for a while. True to his word yet again, The Pumpkin King escorted her to the trees with pictures on them that would lead her back to her real home.

"Thanks again for keeping your promise more than once." She smiled brightly at him.

"It's no problem at all Ami." He waved his hand to emphasize his words. "I'm just sorry that you have to leave so soon." A sad smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

"It's alright Jack," she grasped his hand in hers, "I promise to come back. I just don't know when."

"Well be sure to let me know in one of your letters when you can." He said as his smile became a little warmer.

She gave him a curt nod and released her gentle grip on his bony hand. She turned to face the Pumpkin Door but then she heard a sudden barking. A ghostly dog with a bright jack-o-lantern nose zoomed in and came to a stop in front of the little girl, a sad expression on his usually happy face.

"It's ok Zero," she smiled at said spirit, "I'll come back to see you and Jack again. I'm sure going to miss you both." She patted the nearly transparent dog on the head. She turned and paused a moment before she ran up to Jack and embraced him in a crushing hug.

He had nearly been knocked off balance but was able to return the kind gesture. "I'll most certainly miss you too." Once they let go, he conjured a spell and a small carrying lamp that was already lit appeared in his hand. "I know that it'll probably be nighttime when you return so take this lamp and it will light your way."

Amelia graciously accepted the gift with a thank you and once again stood in front of the door. Her free hand brushed over her crown, as if trying to convince herself that it wasn't a dream. She looked up and placed her hand on the knob and gave her two friends once last fleeting glance and a smile before she opened the door. The familiar black wind came out, swirled around the small girl and carried her into the hollow trunk. Almost like a breath in the wind, she was gone.

Unlike when he sent her home before, Jack left with a smile on his face for he knew that she would keep to her word and come back some day.

--

On the other side of the Jack-O-Lantern door, she landed gracefully on the ground, unlike the many times when she would land on her rump either to or from Halloween Town. With her lamp in hand, she started down the path back home as Jack's gift illuminated the darkness. After she had been walking for a while, she stopped by a natural spring to rest. She sat down on a large rock and placed the lamp next to her. Her childish curiosity caused her look over into the small pool of water. As she gazed into its depths, her reflection disappeared and a blurry image of something else took its place. The foggy reflection began to clear up and she realized exactly just who she was looking at.

"Jack?" she tilted her head to the side in confusion.

It seemed as though the image did not hear her for there was no response, nor did it seem like he could even see her. He was just standing there and his eyes seemed to be lost in a world of his own of some sort. What she saw next greatly surprised her. A young woman walked up next to him and lightly placed her hand on his shoulder, which knocked him out of his daze. The woman wore in a floor length, royal blue dress with sleeves and was only a little more than a head shorter than him. Her long, dark hair cascaded down her back and her eyes seemed to sparkle in the moon's light. Jack's expression told the small child, who watched the scene before her unfold, that he recognized her for a smile spread across his face.

"Who's that lady?" Amelia asked no one in particular for she knew neither could hear her.

Or so she thought, at that moment, the lady in question turned her head and stared right into the little girl's eyes. Jack turned his head in the direction the young woman was looking but he obviously didn't see what she saw. They started to talk to each other though the small sorceress could hear no words. The lady looked to Amelia again with a knowing smile upon her lips. She said something to the skeleton next to her and he responded. They turned around and walked away. To the still confused sorceress, it was the illusion of them walking deeper into the spring until they finally disappeared into the dark depths.

She raised her eyebrow as the peculiar scene ended, "What was that all about?" Her mind replayed the whole thing over and over until she finally reached her home.

After she had snuck in and tucked herself into bed, the whole ordeal seemed like nothing more than a dream. She apparently forgot about the lamp that she had set on her bedside table which had played an important role in the strange occurrence.

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**IMPORTANT: Last chapter I said that the sequel will be called The Nightmare Before Halloween, well I decided not to use that title. Instead, the sequel will now be called: _The Nightmare of Amelia Brave_**

**Catchy no? **

**Hope you enjoyed the whole story!! D **


	11. Author's Note: Important!

**Hello everyone! Just wanted to let you all know that The Nightmare of Amelia Brave has been uploaded….so go read now! Just go to My Stories and click! **

**Enjoy!**

**Oh, and I want to thank all of my readers for, well reading, and my reviewers for commenting! This is my first multi-chapter story that I've completed! Thank you guys soooo much!!**


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